Uses: Anything relating to finance and money.

 

Free Creative Commons Finance Images... I created these images in my studio and have made them all available for personal or commercial use. Hope you like them and find them useful.

 

To see more of our CC by 2.0 finance images click here... see profile for attribution.

 

Inspiration: Receiving money. Earning money. Investing. Cost of living. Saving money... etc.

 

From Wikipedia relating to the original structure:

 

For the Canadian Centennial in 1967, the City of Calgary elected to undertake, as a civic project, the construction of a new planetarium. This choice was reflective of the interest in space exploration that was prominent in the 1960s. A design competition was held in 1964 for the new building. Advised by the director of the architecture department at the University of British Columbia, Henry Elder, the three finalists were McMillan Long, Gordon Atkins, and Bill Boucock. The design by the firm of McMillan Long and Associates was eventually selected as the winner. This firm had been established in 1964 between Hugh McMillan and Jack Long, and lasted until 1969, at which time McMillan retired. The Centennial Planetarium was built between 1966 and 1967 by Sam Hashman.

 

Built on a site north of Mewata Armouries overlooking the Bow River, the Planetarium is constructed of raw concrete and features non-orthogonal design. Designed around a central bay, the building has two main wings. The west wing holds the "celestial theatre," a 255-seat theatre with a 65-foot domed screen. The east wing holds a 250-seat lecture hall. The Planetarium also contains a library, observation deck, and telescopes.

 

In 1967 the Planetarium won the Nation Design Council Concrete Award, and in 1970 the Massey Medal in Architecture.

 

From 1971 to 1985, the Planetarium also housed the collection of aircraft, aero engines, and associated reference library that became the basis of the Hangar Flight Museum. [1]

 

In 1984 the Calgary Science Centre moved into the Centennial Planetarium. It would occupy the space for the next 27 years.

 

The Science Centre moved into a new building in 2011, leaving the Planetarium empty or under-utilized until Contemporary Calgary acquired it. After extensive renovations, the building reopened as Calgary's premier modern art gallery.

Here is another scan and retouch that relates some history... and needs help from Edna to stand up. It was snapped of Katherine at Alice's Wild Basin cabin at the Copeland Lake area, the south end of Rocky Mtn. National Park. Grandmother, Alice, spent every summer at her cabin right near the Wild Basin Lodge. The one-year-old and mother is at the porch steps on the south side of the cabin. The pine is the balsam by the steps in the background that Granny watered regularly. Down the hill, the North St.Vrain River scrambled down the canyon. It was filled with all those trout. Alice kept her fly rod on nails on the porch above. It was quick to grab on her way down to the river. The cabin was ever a mellow place to stay in 1943 and anytime later.

 

Talk about a mellow place to stay, the entire world would like to pack in here this summer as Global Warming ramps up. It snowed on me at Wild Basin one July. Now, at Longmont, the nights are seldom dropping to 60 and below so far. So much for T-Rump's Tirade against the Environment (his TTE - Trade the Environment for cash policy); it's starting to really pay off with rain in the Arctic and state sized bergs calving in the Antarctic.

 

The water supply for the uninsulated cabin was pumped directly from the river when there was no thought about the quality of the water supply. Do I remember something about tumbling streams oxygenating themselves in a 1/4 mile? Nobody ever gave a thought about drinking from the stream that fed Longmont's water supply.

 

As usual, dust on the negative and contact printing left untold flecks, white and black, and garbage across the image. In close, it looks like a shotgun blast. As always, it provides plenty of practice whether needed or not. I used the same two techniques, the Stamp and Brush to work on the image. Unfortunately, the scanner usually features all the defects on old snaps like this. I suppose that it will always be possible that this family will exchange the digital retouching and spread them far enough that my labor won't be entirely wasted.

 

I gang output these to high resolution PDFs that can be printed at home of taken to Fed-X Kinkos for their color printing. I have enough to output another sheet. Their output never seems to waver from the quality of the PDF. Trimming them with scissors, especially the deckle edges, will be a challenge.

  

The following is an excerpt of a blog written by Tim Dees who relates his experiences working for Silva's in the mid 1970's.

 

Link: timdees.com/blog/?p=375

 

The ambulances were pink, because that was the owner’s wife’s favorite color. Pink bed linen, and when I got there, they were just moving away from pink shirts, as they were too difficult to find. Bob Silva never bought a new ambulance. They were all used Cadillacs, as he believed a used Cadillac was much classier than a new van-type that actually ran. I was taking a woman in labor to a hospital in San Francisco when the tranny gave up the ghost in Hunter’s Point. I’d told Bob the day before that it was on its last legs, and he advised that I should shut up and drive what I was given to drive. We were dead in the water, and just barely within radio range to call for another rig to take our patient.

 

The county came out with some new regs for gear that had to be on the rig, and one requirement was an obstetrics kit. Pre-packaged OB kits from Dyna-Med were $7.50 each. Silva bought one. He put it on a rig, sent it to be inspected, then brought that one back and put the same kit on the next rig to be inspected. When it was finally left in the rig he usually drove, he wrapped it in strapping tape to discourage anyone from actually using it. It wasn’t like we didn’t need OB kits. I delivered three babies while I worked there.

 

The electronic sirens we’re so used to now were just coming into widespread use in the 1970s. Most of our ambulances were equipped with mechanical sirens that wound up slowly when activated. They had brakes on them, and if you forgot to brake the siren before you left the rig, it would take a minute or more to wind down, growling the whole time. The big daddy of these mechanical sirens was the Federal Q2. Some of these are still in use on fire engines. The Q2 is a massive thing, and drew so much power that the engine would knock when you leaned on the button too long—the spark plugs didn’t get enough voltage. Few man-made things are as loud as a Q2. One day, while en route back to the station with a new attendant, I stopped at a Safeway for some groceries. I left the attendant in the rig, telling him to tap the siren if we got a call. When the call came in, he didn’t tap on the horn ring that activated the siren—he held it down. The ambulance was parked facing the store and its large plate glass windows. I heard the siren, then heard the window start to reverberate in its frame as it resonated with the blast of sonic waves—“whap-whap-whap-whapwhapWhapWhapWHAPWHAPWHAP.” I made it back to the rig, screaming ineffectively, before the window shattered.

 

Between the mechanical siren, separate heater for the rear compartment, more blinking lights than a Vegas casino, etc., the ambulances needed a lot of electrical power. A single battery would be dead before you got to the hospital, so most ambulances had two car batteries, cross-connected via a big rotary Cole-Hersee switch. The switch, which looked a little like the access cover to your house’s sewer cleanout pipe, had four positions: Battery One, Battery Two, Both, and Off. “Both” was the usual setting, but when the rig was parked, it was common to switch it to “Off,” so the batteries wouldn’t be drained if you had forgotten to turn something off. This effectively disconnected the batteries from the rest of the rig. If you wanted to have some fun with another crew, you could turn everything in their rig on, but leave the Cole-Hersee switch off. When they turned it back on, hilarity would ensue.

 

The gear we had in these ambulances was very basic, and most of us purchased and brought our own equipment to work, rather than provide inferior care for our patients. I bought my own stethoscope and sphygmomanometer (blood pressure cuff), chemical cold packs, wire ladder splints, ammonia “wake up gizmo” ampules, etc. Consumable supplies, such as self-adhering Kerlix bandages and waterproof tape, were stolen from the hospitals. The bandages we had on board, furnished by the company, were made of crumbling linen material from the Korean War era. Oropharyngeal airways were supposed to be either used once and discarded, or autoclaved between patients, but we had neither replacement airways or an autoclave, so we wiped them clean with alcohol and hoped for the best.

 

Our suction apparatus was powered through the engine’s vacuum manifold. Suction power went to zero when the engine was accelerating. If you were trying to clear gunk from a patient’s airway while your driver was flooring it, you’d tell him to coast until you had made some progress.

 

We weren’t allowed to say someone was dead, even if the flesh was falling from their bones. Law enforcement officers could make that determination, but doing so meant they would have to remain at the scene until the coroner arrived, which could take hours. This being the case, many officers chose to see some glimmer of life in corpses long past resurrection. We responded to an “11-80” (traffic accident with serious injuries) attended by a member of the California Highway Patrol to find a pickup truck that had rolled over with an unfortunate passenger in the back. The passenger had not quite been decapitated, as his head was hanging by a few strips of flesh. This was one of the more obvious dead people I had encountered, but the Chippie ordered us to run him in. Getting the body onto the gurney had the same effect achieved in kosher slaughterhouses, where the neck veins are severed and the blood is allowed to drain from the carcass. By the time we got to the hospital, the floor of the rear compartment was literally awash in blood, with it sloshing over my boots. I called the office and told them we would be out of service for a while.

 

This pre-dated the AIDS scare, and even though hepatitis and other bloodborne pathogens were just as nasty then as now (and there was no vaccine), we had no latex gloves to wear. Back then, gloves were worn by medical people to protect the patient from infection. There wasn’t a lot of thought given to protecting the caregivers. I remember cleaning up after an especially gruesome call and thinking that I wasn’t just cleaning something, but rather someone, out from under my fingernails.

 

One case where we didn’t have to transport was at the home of an older gentleman. I never knew the circumstances that prompted the call, but we arrived a few minutes after the fire department and before the cops. As we walked up to the house, the firemen were walking out, chuckling to one another. “He’s dead!” they said with some amusement. We entered the bedroom to find an older man lying supine on top of his bed, naked. Rigor had set in, so he had been gone for some time. What the firefighters found so funny was that the man had expired while engaged in an act of self-pleasure, and still had the weapon in hand. My partner and I looked at each other and registered much the same expression the firemen had. As we walked out, the cops were just arriving. “He’s dead!” we told them. I suppose there are worse ways to go, but that’s not how I want to be found.

 

I ran a lot of calls at Silva’s. The shifts were 120 hours long–yes, five days straight. You got paid straight time ($2.00/hour in 1974) for the first eight hours, a guaranteed time-and-a-half for five more hours, and were unpaid for three hours of meals, whether you actually got to eat them or not. Between midnight and eight in the morning, you got overtime for the time you were actually in service on the call. If you rolled and were cancelled two minutes out–which was common–you got two minutes of overtime. I swear some of those rigs could find their own way home, because there were many nights I have no memory of having driven them there. When my days off finally arrived, I would usually sleep through at least one of them.

 

The full Silva’s uniform was a sartorial delight. Each time they would give me a new uniform article, it would fall to a mysteriously tragic end, so I wore a white shirt, navy blue knit slacks, and a nylon bomber jacket. If you wanted to show you were management material, the required outfit consisted of a white (formerly pink) shirt with royal blue trousers and Ike jacket. The trousers had white piping down each leg, as did the cuffs of the jacket. On each shoulder of the Ike jacket was a huge purple and gold patch, proclaiming the wearer to be employed by Silva’s Ambulance Service, the words spelled out in metallic script. One was also obliged to wear a royal blue CHP clip-on neck tie. Mandatory accessories to the ensemble included a gold metal nametag, white belt, and white leather shoes. Worn on the shirt or jacket was a shield-type gold badge, about the size of a soup plate. All the badges identified the wearers as “Technician,” except for Bob Silva’s. His said, “Owner.” There was a $20 deposit on the badge. Those who were really in with the in crowd had huge custom Western-style belt buckles with their first names spelled out diagonally, and the corners adorned with red crosses, stars of life, or tiny ambulances. However, the crowning glory accessory–and I only saw one of these–was a gold tie bar, wider than the tie itself, with a fine gold chain attached to either end of the bar. Dangling from the chain was a pink Cadillac ambulance. Its wearer was extremely proud of this, and wouldn’t tell anyone where he got it, lest someone steal his thunder.

 

Employee turnover was around 200% annually, and I was a prized employee because I always showed up on time and sober. I was able to work full time on school vacations and summer, and from Friday evening to early Monday morning, when I’d leave to make it to my first class at San Jose State. It wasn’t uncommon to have an employee go AWOL, and have the cops show up a day or so later, looking for them. You had to be fingerprinted to get an ambulance driver’s license, but all you needed to work as an attendant was a first aid card, which management would procure for you for a small fee.

 

Bob Curry, in almost the full Silva's uniform (no badge), posing with a "new" ambulance, formerly used by Allied Ambulance in Oakland.

Bob Curry, in almost the full Silva’s uniform (no badge), posing with a “new” ambulance, formerly used by Allied Ambulance in Oakland.

 

There was one very senior employee whose name was also Bob. Bob thought he was the manager, and would tell you he was if asked, despite advice to the contrary if one of the Silvas was listening. Bob was very possessive of “his” ambulance, which was always the newest one (given that they were all used, “new” was a relative term). One night, I had just come in to work, and a call came in. The dispatcher told me to take it, so I grabbed an attendant and got in the first rig I saw. It was Bob’s, of course. When I returned, Bob screamed my face, lest I forget that that particular rig was HIS ambulance, and I had better stay the hell out of it if I knew what was good for me. Bob had an apartment near the main station, so he didn’t have to sleep at the station when he was on duty. If you were Bob’s attendant (Bob never worked in the back unless there was some real hero stuff going on), you were allowed to drive Bob’s ambulance to his place, where you switched seats. That night, a co-conspirator and I did a little customizing to Bob’s rig. When he got in the next morning, he found the handle on the driver’s door adorned with some adhesive tape, reading “Bob’s Door Handle.” Inside, more tape indicated Bob’s Steering Wheel, Bob’s Cigarette Lighter, Bob’s Gearshift, Bob’s Turn Indicator, Bob’s Accelerator, Bob’s Radio, Bob’s Other Radio, and so on. Tucked under Bob’s Sun Visor was a card on a little string, trimmed to drop to eye level: “Hi, Bob.”

 

Silva’s didn’t have the market cornered on odd employees. A rival company employed a guy we called Captain Action. Captain Action worked for a company that had more traditional uniforms, but still included a badge. The issued badge wasn’t up to Captain Action’s high standards. He had his own badge made up. It was a thing of beauty. It was a gold seven-point star (the most common style of police badge in those parts), but much larger than most police badges. It put the Silva’s badge to shame on size alone. I remember it had a big California State Seal in the middle, and a lot of text on the banners and inner ring. There was so much lettering on the badge that I never got to finish reading it, although I saw it often. Captain Action also wore a police-style Sam Browne belt with various snaps and cases, including a cuff case, handcuffs, and a baton ring. I never saw a baton, but I’m sure he had it around somewhere.

 

Captain Action loved to talk on the radio. Each ambulance had two radios, one on the company channel, and one that broadcasted on a shared, county-wide channel, called County Control. There was no direct channel to the hospitals, so one was obliged to tell County Control what you had and where you were bringing it, so the dispatcher could give the appropriate ER the heads up. An appropriate message might be something like, “County Control, Ambulance 3335, en route Code 3 to Peninsula Medical with an unconscious head injury.” Captain Action preferred to be somewhat more detailed, and made liberal use of the phonetic alphabet. “County Control, Ambulance 3330, en route Peninsula Medical Center with a 33-year-old white male with a history of cardiac myopathy, I spell CHARLES-ADAM-ROBERT-DAVID-IDA-ADAM-CHARLES-BREAK-MARY-YELLOW-OCEAN-PAUL-ADAM-TOM-HENRY-YELLOW…”

 

After one of these lengthy naratives (keep in mind that there were ten or twelve other ambulances in the county that used the same channel), the dispatcher was oddly silent. Captain Action made another try to ensure his message made it through. “County Control, Ambulance 3330, did you copy?”

 

“Ambulance 3330, County Control, TOM-EDWARD-NORA-BREAK-FRANK-OCEAN-UNION-ROBERT.”

 

Ah, the good old days.

 

Written by Tim Dees on January 1st, 2015

Maths in neon at Autonomy in Cambridge. This is Bayes's Theorem, relating the probability of A given B to B given A.

 

This image is used on the Philosopher, Psychologist, Plasterer blog paul-david-robinson.com/post/5129596878/the-philosophy-of... in an article "The Philosophy of Physics". It was also used on the Wikipedia article for Bayes Theorem.

 

It was further used on a Spanish blog profeblog.es/blog/luismiglesias/2010/01/02/fotografia-mat...

 

It was later used in a father's blog post about having twin girls - www.bigdansramblings.com/2012/03/30/phases-finding-twin-g... - congratulations mate.

 

It is also used on a blog article about Stanford offering a statistics in medicine course - scopeblog.stanford.edu/2013/05/28/stanford-offers-free-st...

 

And an article "Signal, Noise and Clinical Trials" - lacertabio.com/2013/04/signal-noise-and-clinical-trial-re...

 

And a review of an elementary statistics course. moocnewsandreviews.com/course-review-elementary-statistic...

 

And the front page of a wiki about Probabilistic Programming for Advancing Machine Learning (whatever that is) - ppaml.galois.com/wiki/

 

And an LSE blog post about citations: "A Bayesian approach to the REF: finding the right data on journal articles and citations to inform decision-making." blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/2013/12/02/journal...

 

And an Italian site "Rebel Fitness". Not sure why, I assume it just looked mathematical. www.fitnessribelle.it/alimentazione/calcolo-calorie/

 

And a blog about the emotional state of being an entrepreneur - www.ecosystemsandentrepreneurs.com/blog/2015/4/3/the-emot...

 

And a Strangeloop presentation about probability. www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiiWzJE0fEA

 

An article about Bayesian logic in Python. machinelearningmastery.com/naive-bayes-classifier-scratch...

 

"

Bayes’s Theorem & Naïve Bayes Classifiers " dem1995.github.io/machine-learning/extra_pages/naive_baye...

Uses: Anything relating to finance and money.

 

Free Creative Commons Finance Images... I created these images in my studio and have made them all available for personal or commercial use. Hope you like them and find them useful.

 

To see more of our CC by 2.0 finance images click here... see profile for attribution.

Kinetic: Relating to, caused by, or producing motion.

 

These are called “Kinetic” photographs because there is motion, energy, and movement involved, specifically my and the camera’s movements.

 

Most of these are shot outdoors where I have the room to literally spin and throw my little camera several feet up into the air, with some throws going as high as 15 feet or more!

 

None of these are Photoshopped, layered, or a composite photo...what you see occurs in one shot, one take.

 

Aren’t I afraid that I will drop and break my camera? For regular followers of my photostream and this series you will know that I have already done so. This little camera has been dropped many times, and broken once when dropped on concrete outside. It still functions...not so well for regular photographs, but superbly for more kinetic work.

 

Albeit supremely risky this is one of my favorite ways to produce abstract photographs.

 

If you'd like to see more please check out my set, "Vertigo:"

 

www.flickr.com/photos/motorpsiclist/sets/72157630591282642/

 

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To read more about Kinetic Photography click the Wikipedia link below:

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_photography

 

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My photographs and videos and any derivative works are my private property and are copyright © by me, John Russell (aka “Zoom Lens”) and ALL my rights, including my exclusive rights, are reserved. ANY use without my permission in writing is forbidden by law.

 

Photographer: P H Jauncey. PAColl-1296-2-07. Lucy Taylor photographs relating to Wellington Girls’ College, Alexander Turnbull Library

 

An expanded version was published in FishHead magazine, January 2014.

 

Here we are at the Wellington Girls’ College in Thorndon. It is Parents’ Day, 1927, and the girls are giving a demonstration of Swedish drill. This particular move was called the halfway side falling position and was designed to strengthen the side muscles. An instruction booklet of the time stresses that it should be done without bending the knees or letting the hips sink. The girls seem very proficient.

 

By the 1920s Swedish drill was seen as the state-of-the-art in girls’ physical education. The flexing, lunging and balancing movements are not dissimilar to some exercise programmes today, and the loose tunics worn here were certainly an improvement on the restrictive clothing these girls’ mothers would have had to wear for any outdoor activity.

 

Less modern was the strict regimentation. In the years between the wars such military-like manoeuvrings were a popular part of organised activity for the young. In the same year as this photograph was taken, the outdoor highlight for many Wellington school children was a tightly choreographed welcome to the Duke of York at Newtown Park. Theyformed themselves into a living union jack. Other examples of uniformed mass choreography for young people included the uniquely New Zealand phenomenon of marching girls that emerged in the 1930s.

 

Mrs Taylor, the head of the College’s physical training programme, was an innovator, though. In particular she ignored some of her how-to-do-drill textbooks and enjoyed mixing her Swedish drill instruction with music and dance.

 

The girls in this photograph no doubt also took part in one of the highlights of the school year – Mrs Taylor’s annual “gymnastic display.” In 1927 it was at the Opera House. In addition to Swedish drill, the newspaper advertisements promised “Lantern marching, Cymbals, Wands, Poi Dances, Spanish Dances, Thunder, Rain and Frost,” all of which were ambitiously worked into a “Fairy Folk Tales of the Maori” theme, based on James Cowan’s recently published children’s book of the same name.

 

Go to this image's record

 

Read a review of the Opera House gymnastic display

 

Wellingtonians: From the Turnbull Collections contains a selection of the entries from this Flickr set, and some new ones too. This high-quality publication costs just $29.99. You can pick it up at good bookshops or from the publisher, Steele Roberts.

Les Invalides contains museums and monuments, all relating to the military history of France, as well as a hospital and a retirement home for war veterans, the building's original purpose. The buildings house the Musée de l'Armée (the military museum of the Army of France), the Musée des Plans-Reliefs and the Musée d'Histoire Contemporaine, as well as the Dôme des Invalides, a large church, the tallest in Paris at a height of 350 feet. It houses tombs of some of France's war heroes, most notably Napoleon. The architect of Les Invalides was Libéral Bruant. By the time the enlarged project was completed in 1676, the river front measured 643 feet, and the complex had 15 courtyards, the largest being the cour d'honneur ("court of honor") for military parades. Jules Hardouin-Mansart assisted the aged Bruant, and the chapel for veterans was finished in 1679. This chapel was known as Église Saint-Louis des Invalides, and daily attendance of the veterans in the church services was required. Shortly after the veterans' chapel was completed, Louis XIV commissioned Mansart to construct a separate private royal chapel referred to as the Église du Dôme. The domed chapel was finished in 1708. The building retained its primary function of a retirement home and hospital for military veterans until the early 20th century. In 1872 the musée d'artillerie (Artillery Museum) was located within the building to be joined by the musée historique des armées (Historical Museum of the Armies) in 1896. The two institutions were merged to form the present Musée de l'Armée in 1905. At the same time, the veterans in residence were dispersed to smaller centers outside Paris, as the building became too large for its original purpose. The modern complex includes facilities about a hundred elderly or incapacitated former soldiers, including one gentleman sitting outside in full World War II army dress.

  

Here is another scan and retouch that relates enormous history for our piece of the Rockies. When I discovered it, I exclaimed "WTF!" That inserted a worm into my brain and I dug in. It required a load of research and visits to Google Maps as well as Wikipedia to identify and confirm the location. I suppose I could have driven up with a sandwich and a drink. This place is a real zoo now. I finally found the skyline and nailed the information. In fact, it was a snap of William James and Edna Sophia Kiteley on an exceptionally early shot from Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mtn. National Park. How early? Look at the heavy machinery marks on the edge of the road. Was the highway under construction? It was finished to the Grand Lake side in 1939. Were they married? I saw no rings when I focused in close. They were married in 03/29/1937. The Fall River road was already in existence and construction on Trail Ridge lagged for some time.

 

OK, OK, this in very close to the now existing Many Park Overlook. Looks skimpy to me as far as established overlooks go! Find RMNP on Google maps and plug in the overlook name. You will have to be fluid with the 3D functionality of the maps and you can match the skyline though paved today. Don't look so paved then and I could not find when the road was paved, let alone cleaned up from construction.

 

Grandmother, Alice, spent every summer at her cabin right near the Wid Basin Lodge at the southern end of Rocky Mountain National Park. This was probably a day's excursion from her cabin in an old jalopy. Granny probably went fly fishing instead.

 

As usual, the negative and contact printing left a lot of flecks, white and black, and garbage across the image. In close, it looks like a shotgun blast. As always, it provides plenty of practice whether needed or not. I used the same two techniques, the Stamp and Brush to work on the image. Unfortunately, the scanner usually features all the defects on old snaps like this. I suppose that it will always be possible that this family will exchange the digital shots and spread them far enough that my labor won't be entirely wasted.

 

Generally, I gang output these to high resolution PDFs that can be printed at home of taken to Fed-X Kinkos for their color printing. I have enough to output another sheet. Their output never seems to waver from the quality of the PDF.

 

I received a load of scanning and retouching recently relegated to me. So far, I have a load of solid days packed into the project and the collection has not shrunk that much. I wonder why the family thinks that I owe them so much difficult retouching and output labor?

  

Another excerpt from the story that I first started relating here.

 

The three siblings had traveled for several days, finding food and water through their own skills or the generosity of strangers along their route - which meandered but steadily took them west toward the great ocean that marked the edge of the known world. On the 19th day of their journey, they finally reached the rocky shores of the great ocean, and stopped - struck by the vast vista of water spread out before them. For the first time in any of their young lives they felt the weight of that great body of water and it penetrated them to their core, knowing their goal lay on its far side. But having traveled far, and in no particular hurry, they decided to camp that evening on the beach and plan their crossing upon morning.

 

It was while searching for firewood that the youngest brother saw a sparkle of white nestled amongst the stones of the beach. Scrambling over the slippery rocks to just near the edge of the surf, he bent down and plucked up three perfectly smooth, white stones that made him involuntarily catch his breath for the obvious magic they held within them, for surely these must be three of the fabled wishing stones of old. Smiling at his good fortune, he ran up the beach to share the news with his brother and sister. Arriving breathless at the camp though, their reactions were mixed. Rather than a similar excitement, the older brother met the stones with caution and the sister was more curious than anything else. All three had grown up with stories of the magic of old, but that was all the world was left with these days... stories and tattered memories of the great magic that had once been so common. After much debate, the youngest brother and his sister wanted to try to use the stones to cross the ocean safely. The eldest brother held out though, arguing that they had come so far on just their wits and abilities that it was foolish to trust something they knew next to nothing about. But the younger two were just as stubborn, arguing that they should not be diverted by fear of the unknown, as the crossing of the ocean itself was a great unknown voyage that would not be without great danger. In the end, they decided to put the stones aside and get some badly needed rest, as the trek across the continent had been arduous indeed. The stones and their use could wait until the next morning as well, just as the ocean would.

 

And indeed, wait they did, for the stones and the ocean were still there when the three awoke in a chilly, damp fog. But still agreement eluded them and even threatened to fray the bonds between them. So each decided to take a stone and decide how to best use it. The youngest brother walked down to the surf, wading up to his knees and wished to be a fish, so that he could swim across the ocean to the far side, agreeing to wait on the far shore for the other two. Amazingly enough, and quite suddenly, the youngest brother was gone, and a silver fish hung suspended momentarily in the air where he had stood, and then gravity claimed it and the fish splashed into the ocean. The other two watched it leap once above the waves and then it was seen no more, presumably swimming west.

 

The middle sister then took up her stone, and with a quick hug to her older brother, wished to be a bird, such that she could fly safely above the ocean to the far shore, and hopefully keep an eye out for her younger brother. In a blink, she too vanished and a splendid white gull flapped its wings a bit unsteadily, before rising into the sky, circling twice and flying away west until her silhouette vanished into the morning mist. The oldest stood there a long time gazing out across the ocean and into the fog, which gently receded as the day grew longer. He stood there, just looking, holding his stone in his hand. At one point he brought it up to his chest and mouthed words that only an empty beach could hear and dropped the stone into his pocket.

 

He spent the rest of that day collecting wood, with which he started to fashion a small boat. The beach was quite generous, for between what the ocean had washed up and what he carried himself, he soon had all he needed and small but sturdy vessel lay in front of him, pulled up just beyond the hungry reach of the incoming tide. Into the boat he stocked what food and water he had left and just as the shadows were beginning to grow long, he pushed the small craft into the height of the tide. He sailed all through the evening, and though he did not think it likely, the fatigue of the day soon caught up with him and he fell fast asleep, trusting to the wind and tides to carry him in the right direction. In the middle of the night, the eldest brother was woken from his sleep and sat up with a start. The sky above him was absolutely dark and at first he didn't notice the reason, but as the fog of sleep slowly crept from his brain, he realized that not a star shone in the sky above. He then became aware of a light from the ocean itself, and leaning over the side of his small boat, he gasped as he saw all the stars of the night sky floating in the ocean - not reflected, for he glanced quickly back up to the still blank canvas of the night sky above him. The ocean itself contained all the stars that should have been wheeling by over him. The eldest could make no sense of this spectacle, and he lingered at the edge of the boat for some time trying to comprehend what he saw. Slowly dawn approached on the horizon and the stars faded from the waters around the boat as the sky lightened above it.

 

He was shaken from his reverie by the cry of a gull overhead and looking up he saw his sister flying closer and closer until she plummeted into the ocean nearby. The eldest brother quickly brought his boat around and scooped the bird from the water and set her gently into the boat. In a moment the bird was gone, replaced by the familiar form of his younger sister. "The ocean is too big," she gasped. "I flew for hours and hours and still saw no land, there is no way I can fly across this whole expanse. I am glad you came when you did." He gave her some food and water and together they sailed through the day. Just as the sun was approaching the horizon and the breeze was turning cool, a gleaming silver fish jumped from the water and landed with a splash in the boat, only to disappear and be replaced by the form of the youngest. "Am I so glad to see you," the youngest exclaimed. "It is impossible to find one's way through the ocean, it is too vast and deep. I asked other fish, but they only know of things below the waves, coasts and quests such as ours do not concern them and they were of no help at all."

 

And with that the three were once again reunited. They pointed their boat toward the setting sun and ran with the wind across the surface of the ocean. And for another eighteen days they sailed such, collecting rain water when they needed it and catching fish from the bountiful waters to fill their stomachs. But other than that first night, the stars remained as they should, twinkling safely in the night sky overhead, and the eldest remained at a loss to explain the significance of what he had seen. The story of that night had such an impact that it distracted the younger two siblings from ever asking their older brother what had become of his wishing stone, and for his part, he did not bring the subject up, content as he was with having the three reunited. And on the nineteenth day of sailing, a dark strip of land finally broke the horizon, and smiles crested the horizons on three different faces in a like manner.

  

Ganesha, also spelled Ganesh, and also known as Ganapati and Vinayaka, is a widely worshipped deity in the Hindu pantheon. His image is found throughout India and Nepal. Hindu sects worship him regardless of affiliations. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains, Buddhists, and beyond India.

 

Although he is known by many attributes, Ganesha's elephant head makes him easy to identify. Ganesha is widely revered as the remover of obstacles, the patron of arts and sciences and the deva of intellect and wisdom. As the god of beginnings, he is honoured at the start of rituals and ceremonies. Ganesha is also invoked as patron of letters and learning during writing sessions. Several texts relate mythological anecdotes associated with his birth and exploits and explain his distinct iconography.

 

Ganesha emerged as a distinct deity in the 4th and 5th centuries CE, during the Gupta Period, although he inherited traits from Vedic and pre-Vedic precursors. He was formally included among the five primary deities of Smartism (a Hindu denomination) in the 9th century. A sect of devotees called the Ganapatya arose, who identified Ganesha as the supreme deity. The principal scriptures dedicated to Ganesha are the Ganesha Purana, the Mudgala Purana, and the Ganapati Atharvashirsa.

 

ETYMOLOGY AND OTHER NAMES

Ganesha has been ascribed many other titles and epithets, including Ganapati and Vighneshvara. The Hindu title of respect Shri is often added before his name. One popular way Ganesha is worshipped is by chanting a Ganesha Sahasranama, a litany of "a thousand names of Ganesha". Each name in the sahasranama conveys a different meaning and symbolises a different aspect of Ganesha. At least two different versions of the Ganesha Sahasranama exist; one version is drawn from the Ganesha Purana, a Hindu scripture venerating Ganesha.

 

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

 

Vinayaka is a common name for Ganesha that appears in the Purāṇas and in Buddhist Tantras. This name is reflected in the naming of the eight famous Ganesha temples in Maharashtra known as the Ashtavinayak (aṣṭavināyaka). The names Vighnesha and Vighneshvara (Lord of Obstacles) refers to his primary function in Hindu theology as the master and remover of obstacles (vighna).

 

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

 

In the Burmese language, Ganesha is known as Maha Peinne, derived from Pali Mahā Wināyaka. The widespread name of Ganesha in Thailand is Phra Phikhanet or Phra Phikhanesuan, both of which are derived from Vara Vighnesha and Vara Vighneshvara respectively, whereas the name Khanet (from Ganesha) is rather rare.

 

In Sri Lanka, in the North-Central and North Western areas with predominantly Buddhist population, Ganesha is known as Aiyanayaka Deviyo, while in other Singhala Buddhist areas he is known as Gana deviyo.

 

ICONOGRAPHY

Ganesha is a popular figure in Indian art. Unlike those of some deities, representations of Ganesha show wide variations and distinct patterns changing over time. He may be portrayed standing, dancing, heroically taking action against demons, playing with his family as a boy, sitting down or on an elevated seat, or engaging in a range of contemporary situations.

 

Ganesha images were prevalent in many parts of India by the 6th century. The 13th century statue pictured is typical of Ganesha statuary from 900–1200, after Ganesha had been well-established as an independent deity with his own sect. This example features some of Ganesha's common iconographic elements. A virtually identical statue has been dated between 973–1200 by Paul Martin-Dubost, and another similar statue is dated c. 12th century by Pratapaditya Pal. Ganesha has the head of an elephant and a big belly. This statue has four arms, which is common in depictions of Ganesha. He holds his own broken tusk in his lower-right hand and holds a delicacy, which he samples with his trunk, in his lower-left hand. The motif of Ganesha turning his trunk sharply to his left to taste a sweet in his lower-left hand is a particularly archaic feature. A more primitive statue in one of the Ellora Caves with this general form has been dated to the 7th century. Details of the other hands are difficult to make out on the statue shown. In the standard configuration, Ganesha typically holds an axe or a goad in one upper arm and a pasha (noose) in the other upper arm.

 

The influence of this old constellation of iconographic elements can still be seen in contemporary representations of Ganesha. In one modern form, the only variation from these old elements is that the lower-right hand does not hold the broken tusk but is turned towards the viewer in a gesture of protection or fearlessness (abhaya mudra). The same combination of four arms and attributes occurs in statues of Ganesha dancing, which is a very popular theme.

 

COMMON ATTRIBUTES

Ganesha has been represented with the head of an elephant since the early stages of his appearance in Indian art. Puranic myths provide many explanations for how he got his elephant head. One of his popular forms, Heramba-Ganapati, has five elephant heads, and other less-common variations in the number of heads are known. While some texts say that Ganesha was born with an elephant head, he acquires the head later in most stories. The most recurrent motif in these stories is that Ganesha was created by Parvati using clay to protect her and Shiva beheaded him when Ganesha came between Shiva and Parvati. Shiva then replaced Ganesha's original head with that of an elephant. Details of the battle and where the replacement head came from vary from source to source. Another story says that Ganesha was created directly by Shiva's laughter. Because Shiva considered Ganesha too alluring, he gave him the head of an elephant and a protruding belly.

 

Ganesha's earliest name was Ekadanta (One Tusked), referring to his single whole tusk, the other being broken. Some of the earliest images of Ganesha show him holding his broken tusk. The importance of this distinctive feature is reflected in the Mudgala Purana, which states that the name of Ganesha's second incarnation is Ekadanta. Ganesha's protruding belly appears as a distinctive attribute in his earliest statuary, which dates to the Gupta period (4th to 6th centuries). This feature is so important that, according to the Mudgala Purana, two different incarnations of Ganesha use names based on it: Lambodara (Pot Belly, or, literally, Hanging Belly) and Mahodara (Great Belly). Both names are Sanskrit compounds describing his belly. The Brahmanda Purana says that Ganesha has the name Lambodara because all the universes (i.e., cosmic eggs) of the past, present, and future are present in him. The number of Ganesha's arms varies; his best-known forms have between two and sixteen arms. Many depictions of Ganesha feature four arms, which is mentioned in Puranic sources and codified as a standard form in some iconographic texts. His earliest images had two arms. Forms with 14 and 20 arms appeared in Central India during the 9th and the 10th centuries. The serpent is a common feature in Ganesha iconography and appears in many forms. According to the Ganesha Purana, Ganesha wrapped the serpent Vasuki around his neck. Other depictions of snakes include use as a sacred thread wrapped around the stomach as a belt, held in a hand, coiled at the ankles, or as a throne. Upon Ganesha's forehead may be a third eye or the Shaivite sectarian mark , which consists of three horizontal lines. The Ganesha Purana prescribes a tilaka mark as well as a crescent moon on the forehead. A distinct form of Ganesha called Bhalachandra includes that iconographic element. Ganesha is often described as red in color. Specific colors are associated with certain forms. Many examples of color associations with specific meditation forms are prescribed in the Sritattvanidhi, a treatise on Hindu iconography. For example, white is associated with his representations as Heramba-Ganapati and Rina-Mochana-Ganapati (Ganapati Who Releases from Bondage). Ekadanta-Ganapati is visualized as blue during meditation in that form.

 

VAHANAS

The earliest Ganesha images are without a vahana (mount/vehicle). Of the eight incarnations of Ganesha described in the Mudgala Purana, Ganesha uses a mouse (shrew) in five of them, a lion in his incarnation as Vakratunda, a peacock in his incarnation as Vikata, and Shesha, the divine serpent, in his incarnation as Vighnaraja. Mohotkata uses a lion, Mayūreśvara uses a peacock, Dhumraketu uses a horse, and Gajanana uses a mouse, in the four incarnations of Ganesha listed in the Ganesha Purana. Jain depictions of Ganesha show his vahana variously as a mouse, elephant, tortoise, ram, or peacock.

 

Ganesha is often shown riding on or attended by a mouse, shrew or rat. Martin-Dubost says that the rat began to appear as the principal vehicle in sculptures of Ganesha in central and western India during the 7th century; the rat was always placed close to his feet. The mouse as a mount first appears in written sources in the Matsya Purana and later in the Brahmananda Purana and Ganesha Purana, where Ganesha uses it as his vehicle in his last incarnation. The Ganapati Atharvashirsa includes a meditation verse on Ganesha that describes the mouse appearing on his flag. The names Mūṣakavāhana (mouse-mount) and Ākhuketana (rat-banner) appear in the Ganesha Sahasranama.

 

The mouse is interpreted in several ways. According to Grimes, "Many, if not most of those who interpret Gaṇapati's mouse, do so negatively; it symbolizes tamoguṇa as well as desire". Along these lines, Michael Wilcockson says it symbolizes those who wish to overcome desires and be less selfish. Krishan notes that the rat is destructive and a menace to crops. The Sanskrit word mūṣaka (mouse) is derived from the root mūṣ (stealing, robbing). It was essential to subdue the rat as a destructive pest, a type of vighna (impediment) that needed to be overcome. According to this theory, showing Ganesha as master of the rat demonstrates his function as Vigneshvara (Lord of Obstacles) and gives evidence of his possible role as a folk grāma-devatā (village deity) who later rose to greater prominence. Martin-Dubost notes a view that the rat is a symbol suggesting that Ganesha, like the rat, penetrates even the most secret places.

 

ASSOCIATIONS

 

OBSTACLES

Ganesha is Vighneshvara or Vighnaraja or Vighnaharta (Marathi), the Lord of Obstacles, both of a material and spiritual order. He is popularly worshipped as a remover of obstacles, though traditionally he also places obstacles in the path of those who need to be checked. Paul Courtright says that "his task in the divine scheme of things, his dharma, is to place and remove obstacles. It is his particular territory, the reason for his creation."

 

Krishan notes that some of Ganesha's names reflect shadings of multiple roles that have evolved over time. Dhavalikar ascribes the quick ascension of Ganesha in the Hindu pantheon, and the emergence of the Ganapatyas, to this shift in emphasis from vighnakartā (obstacle-creator) to vighnahartā (obstacle-averter). However, both functions continue to be vital to his character.

 

BUDDHI (KNOWLEDGE)

Ganesha is considered to be the Lord of letters and learning. In Sanskrit, the word buddhi is a feminine noun that is variously translated as intelligence, wisdom, or intellect. The concept of buddhi is closely associated with the personality of Ganesha, especially in the Puranic period, when many stories stress his cleverness and love of intelligence. One of Ganesha's names in the Ganesha Purana and the Ganesha Sahasranama is Buddhipriya. This name also appears in a list of 21 names at the end of the Ganesha Sahasranama that Ganesha says are especially important. The word priya can mean "fond of", and in a marital context it can mean "lover" or "husband", so the name may mean either "Fond of Intelligence" or "Buddhi's Husband".

 

AUM

Ganesha is identified with the Hindu mantra Aum, also spelled Om. The term oṃkārasvarūpa (Aum is his form), when identified with Ganesha, refers to the notion that he personifies the primal sound. The Ganapati Atharvashirsa attests to this association. Chinmayananda translates the relevant passage as follows:

 

(O Lord Ganapati!) You are (the Trinity) Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesa. You are Indra. You are fire [Agni] and air [Vāyu]. You are the sun [Sūrya] and the moon [Chandrama]. You are Brahman. You are (the three worlds) Bhuloka [earth], Antariksha-loka [space], and Swargaloka [heaven]. You are Om. (That is to say, You are all this).

 

Some devotees see similarities between the shape of Ganesha's body in iconography and the shape of Aum in the Devanāgarī and Tamil scripts.

 

FIRST CHAKRA

According to Kundalini yoga, Ganesha resides in the first chakra, called Muladhara (mūlādhāra). Mula means "original, main"; adhara means "base, foundation". The muladhara chakra is the principle on which the manifestation or outward expansion of primordial Divine Force rests. This association is also attested to in the Ganapati Atharvashirsa. Courtright translates this passage as follows: "[O Ganesha,] You continually dwell in the sacral plexus at the base of the spine [mūlādhāra cakra]." Thus, Ganesha has a permanent abode in every being at the Muladhara. Ganesha holds, supports and guides all other chakras, thereby "governing the forces that propel the wheel of life".

 

FAMILY AND CONSORTS

Though Ganesha is popularly held to be the son of Shiva and Parvati, the Puranic myths give different versions about his birth. In some he was created by Parvati, in another he was created by Shiva and Parvati, in another he appeared mysteriously and was discovered by Shiva and Parvati or he was born from the elephant headed goddess Malini after she drank Parvati's bath water that had been thrown in the river.

 

The family includes his brother the war god Kartikeya, who is also called Subramanya, Skanda, Murugan and other names. Regional differences dictate the order of their births. In northern India, Skanda is generally said to be the elder, while in the south, Ganesha is considered the first born. In northern India, Skanda was an important martial deity from about 500 BCE to about 600 CE, when worship of him declined significantly in northern India. As Skanda fell, Ganesha rose. Several stories tell of sibling rivalry between the brothers and may reflect sectarian tensions.

 

Ganesha's marital status, the subject of considerable scholarly review, varies widely in mythological stories. One pattern of myths identifies Ganesha as an unmarried brahmacari. This view is common in southern India and parts of northern India. Another pattern associates him with the concepts of Buddhi (intellect), Siddhi (spiritual power), and Riddhi (prosperity); these qualities are sometimes personified as goddesses, said to be Ganesha's wives. He also may be shown with a single consort or a nameless servant (Sanskrit: daşi). Another pattern connects Ganesha with the goddess of culture and the arts, Sarasvati or Śarda (particularly in Maharashtra). He is also associated with the goddess of luck and prosperity, Lakshmi. Another pattern, mainly prevalent in the Bengal region, links Ganesha with the banana tree, Kala Bo.

 

The Shiva Purana says that Ganesha had begotten two sons: Kşema (prosperity) and Lābha (profit). In northern Indian variants of this story, the sons are often said to be Śubha (auspiciouness) and Lābha. The 1975 Hindi film Jai Santoshi Maa shows Ganesha married to Riddhi and Siddhi and having a daughter named Santoshi Ma, the goddess of satisfaction. This story has no Puranic basis, but Anita Raina Thapan and Lawrence Cohen cite Santoshi Ma's cult as evidence of Ganesha's continuing evolution as a popular deity.

 

WOSHIP AND FESTIVALS

Ganesha is worshipped on many religious and secular occasions; especially at the beginning of ventures such as buying a vehicle or starting a business. K.N. Somayaji says, "there can hardly be a [Hindu] home [in India] which does not house an idol of Ganapati. [..] Ganapati, being the most popular deity in India, is worshipped by almost all castes and in all parts of the country". Devotees believe that if Ganesha is propitiated, he grants success, prosperity and protection against adversity.

 

Ganesha is a non-sectarian deity, and Hindus of all denominations invoke him at the beginning of prayers, important undertakings, and religious ceremonies. Dancers and musicians, particularly in southern India, begin performances of arts such as the Bharatnatyam dance with a prayer to Ganesha. Mantras such as Om Shri Gaṇeshāya Namah (Om, salutation to the Illustrious Ganesha) are often used. One of the most famous mantras associated with Ganesha is Om Gaṃ Ganapataye Namah (Om, Gaṃ, Salutation to the Lord of Hosts).

 

Devotees offer Ganesha sweets such as modaka and small sweet balls (laddus). He is often shown carrying a bowl of sweets, called a modakapātra. Because of his identification with the color red, he is often worshipped with red sandalwood paste (raktacandana) or red flowers. Dūrvā grass (Cynodon dactylon) and other materials are also used in his worship.

 

Festivals associated with Ganesh are Ganesh Chaturthi or Vināyaka chaturthī in the śuklapakṣa (the fourth day of the waxing moon) in the month of bhādrapada (August/September) and the Gaṇeśa jayanti (Gaṇeśa's birthday) celebrated on the cathurthī of the śuklapakṣa (fourth day of the waxing moon) in the month of māgha (January/February)."

 

GANESH CHATURTI

An annual festival honours Ganesha for ten days, starting on Ganesha Chaturthi, which typically falls in late August or early September. The festival begins with people bringing in clay idols of Ganesha, symbolising Ganesha's visit. The festival culminates on the day of Ananta Chaturdashi, when idols (murtis) of Ganesha are immersed in the most convenient body of water. Some families have a tradition of immersion on the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, or 7th day. In 1893, Lokmanya Tilak transformed this annual Ganesha festival from private family celebrations into a grand public event. He did so "to bridge the gap between the Brahmins and the non-Brahmins and find an appropriate context in which to build a new grassroots unity between them" in his nationalistic strivings against the British in Maharashtra. Because of Ganesha's wide appeal as "the god for Everyman", Tilak chose him as a rallying point for Indian protest against British rule. Tilak was the first to install large public images of Ganesha in pavilions, and he established the practice of submerging all the public images on the tenth day. Today, Hindus across India celebrate the Ganapati festival with great fervour, though it is most popular in the state of Maharashtra. The festival also assumes huge proportions in Mumbai, Pune, and in the surrounding belt of Ashtavinayaka temples.

 

TEMPLES

In Hindu temples, Ganesha is depicted in various ways: as an acolyte or subordinate deity (pãrśva-devatã); as a deity related to the principal deity (parivāra-devatã); or as the principal deity of the temple (pradhāna), treated similarly as the highest gods of the Hindu pantheon. As the god of transitions, he is placed at the doorway of many Hindu temples to keep out the unworthy, which is analogous to his role as Parvati’s doorkeeper. In addition, several shrines are dedicated to Ganesha himself, of which the Ashtavinayak (lit. "eight Ganesha (shrines)") in Maharashtra are particularly well known. Located within a 100-kilometer radius of the city of Pune, each of these eight shrines celebrates a particular form of Ganapati, complete with its own lore and legend. The eight shrines are: Morgaon, Siddhatek, Pali, Mahad, Theur, Lenyadri, Ozar and Ranjangaon.

 

There are many other important Ganesha temples at the following locations: Wai in Maharashtra; Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh; Jodhpur, Nagaur and Raipur (Pali) in Rajasthan; Baidyanath in Bihar; Baroda, Dholaka, and Valsad in Gujarat and Dhundiraj Temple in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Prominent Ganesha temples in southern India include the following: Kanipakam in Chittoor; the Jambukeśvara Temple at Tiruchirapalli; at Rameshvaram and Suchindram in Tamil Nadu; at Malliyur, Kottarakara, Pazhavangadi, Kasargod in Kerala, Hampi, and Idagunji in Karnataka; and Bhadrachalam in Andhra Pradesh.

 

T. A. Gopinatha notes, "Every village however small has its own image of Vighneśvara (Vigneshvara) with or without a temple to house it in. At entrances of villages and forts, below pīpaḹa (Sacred fig) trees [...], in a niche [...] in temples of Viṣṇu (Vishnu) as well as Śiva (Shiva) and also in separate shrines specially constructed in Śiva temples [...]; the figure of Vighneśvara is invariably seen." Ganesha temples have also been built outside of India, including southeast Asia, Nepal (including the four Vinayaka shrines in the Kathmandu valley), and in several western countries.

 

RISE TO PROMINENCE

 

FIRST APEARANCE

Ganesha appeared in his classic form as a clearly recognizable deity with well-defined iconographic attributes in the early 4th to 5th centuries. Shanti Lal Nagar says that the earliest known iconic image of Ganesha is in the niche of the Shiva temple at Bhumra, which has been dated to the Gupta period. His independent cult appeared by about the 10th century. Narain summarizes the controversy between devotees and academics regarding the development of Ganesha as follows:

 

What is inscrutable is the somewhat dramatic appearance of Gaņeśa on the historical scene. His antecedents are not clear. His wide acceptance and popularity, which transcend sectarian and territorial limits, are indeed amazing. On the one hand there is the pious belief of the orthodox devotees in Gaņeśa's Vedic origins and in the Purāṇic explanations contained in the confusing, but nonetheless interesting, mythology. On the other hand there are doubts about the existence of the idea and the icon of this deity" before the fourth to fifth century A.D. ... [I]n my opinion, indeed there is no convincing evidence of the existence of this divinity prior to the fifth century.

 

POSSIBLE INFLUENCES

Courtright reviews various speculative theories about the early history of Ganesha, including supposed tribal traditions and animal cults, and dismisses all of them in this way:

 

In the post 600 BC period there is evidence of people and places named after the animal. The motif appears on coins and sculptures.

 

Thapan's book on the development of Ganesha devotes a chapter to speculations about the role elephants had in early India but concludes that, "although by the second century CE the elephant-headed yakṣa form exists it cannot be presumed to represent Gaṇapati-Vināyaka. There is no evidence of a deity by this name having an elephant or elephant-headed form at this early stage. Gaṇapati-Vināyaka had yet to make his debut."

 

One theory of the origin of Ganesha is that he gradually came to prominence in connection with the four Vinayakas (Vināyakas). In Hindu mythology, the Vināyakas were a group of four troublesome demons who created obstacles and difficulties but who were easily propitiated. The name Vināyaka is a common name for Ganesha both in the Purāṇas and in Buddhist Tantras. Krishan is one of the academics who accepts this view, stating flatly of Ganesha, "He is a non-vedic god. His origin is to be traced to the four Vināyakas, evil spirits, of the Mānavagŗhyasūtra (7th–4th century BCE) who cause various types of evil and suffering". Depictions of elephant-headed human figures, which some identify with Ganesha, appear in Indian art and coinage as early as the 2nd century. According to Ellawala, the elephant-headed Ganesha as lord of the Ganas was known to the people of Sri Lanka in the early pre-Christian era.

 

A metal plate depiction of Ganesha had been discovered in 1993, in Iran, it dated back to 1,200 BCE. Another one was discovered much before, in Lorestan Province of Iran.

 

First Ganesha's terracotta images are from 1st century CE found in Ter, Pal, Verrapuram and Chandraketugarh. These figures are small, with elephant head, two arms, and chubby physique. The earliest Ganesha icons in stone were carved in Mathura during Kushan times (2nd-3rd centuries CE).

 

VEDIC AND EPIC LITERATURE

The title "Leader of the group" (Sanskrit: gaṇapati) occurs twice in the Rig Veda, but in neither case does it refer to the modern Ganesha. The term appears in RV 2.23.1 as a title for Brahmanaspati, according to commentators. While this verse doubtless refers to Brahmanaspati, it was later adopted for worship of Ganesha and is still used today. In rejecting any claim that this passage is evidence of Ganesha in the Rig Veda, Ludo Rocher says that it "clearly refers to Bṛhaspati—who is the deity of the hymn—and Bṛhaspati only". Equally clearly, the second passage (RV 10.112.9) refers to Indra, who is given the epithet 'gaṇapati', translated "Lord of the companies (of the Maruts)." However, Rocher notes that the more recent Ganapatya literature often quotes the Rigvedic verses to give Vedic respectability to Ganesha .

 

Two verses in texts belonging to Black Yajurveda, Maitrāyaṇīya Saṃhitā (2.9.1) and Taittirīya Āraṇyaka (10.1), appeal to a deity as "the tusked one" (Dantiḥ), "elephant-faced" (Hastimukha), and "with a curved trunk" (Vakratuņḍa). These names are suggestive of Ganesha, and the 14th century commentator Sayana explicitly establishes this identification. The description of Dantin, possessing a twisted trunk (vakratuṇḍa) and holding a corn-sheaf, a sugar cane, and a club, is so characteristic of the Puranic Ganapati that Heras says "we cannot resist to accept his full identification with this Vedic Dantin". However, Krishan considers these hymns to be post-Vedic additions. Thapan reports that these passages are "generally considered to have been interpolated". Dhavalikar says, "the references to the elephant-headed deity in the Maitrāyaṇī Saṃhitā have been proven to be very late interpolations, and thus are not very helpful for determining the early formation of the deity".

 

Ganesha does not appear in Indian epic literature that is dated to the Vedic period. A late interpolation to the epic poem Mahabharata says that the sage Vyasa (Vyāsa) asked Ganesha to serve as his scribe to transcribe the poem as he dictated it to him. Ganesha agreed but only on condition that Vyasa recite the poem uninterrupted, that is, without pausing. The sage agreed, but found that to get any rest he needed to recite very complex passages so Ganesha would have to ask for clarifications. The story is not accepted as part of the original text by the editors of the critical edition of the Mahabharata, in which the twenty-line story is relegated to a footnote in an appendix. The story of Ganesha acting as the scribe occurs in 37 of the 59 manuscripts consulted during preparation of the critical edition.[174] Ganesha's association with mental agility and learning is one reason he is shown as scribe for Vyāsa's dictation of the Mahabharata in this interpolation. Richard L. Brown dates the story to the 8th century, and Moriz Winternitz concludes that it was known as early as c. 900, but it was not added to the Mahabharata some 150 years later. Winternitz also notes that a distinctive feature in South Indian manuscripts of the Mahabharata is their omission of this Ganesha legend. The term vināyaka is found in some recensions of the Śāntiparva and Anuśāsanaparva that are regarded as interpolations. A reference to Vighnakartṛīṇām ("Creator of Obstacles") in Vanaparva is also believed to be an interpolation and does not appear in the critical edition.

 

PURANIC PERIOD

Stories about Ganesha often occur in the Puranic corpus. Brown notes while the Puranas "defy precise chronological ordering", the more detailed narratives of Ganesha's life are in the late texts, c. 600–1300. Yuvraj Krishan says that the Puranic myths about the birth of Ganesha and how he acquired an elephant's head are in the later Puranas, which were composed from c. 600 onwards. He elaborates on the matter to say that references to Ganesha in the earlier Puranas, such as the Vayu and Brahmanda Puranas, are later interpolations made during the 7th to 10th centuries.

 

In his survey of Ganesha's rise to prominence in Sanskrit literature, Ludo Rocher notes that:

 

Above all, one cannot help being struck by the fact that the numerous stories surrounding Gaṇeśa concentrate on an unexpectedly limited number of incidents. These incidents are mainly three: his birth and parenthood, his elephant head, and his single tusk. Other incidents are touched on in the texts, but to a far lesser extent.

 

Ganesha's rise to prominence was codified in the 9th century, when he was formally included as one of the five primary deities of Smartism. The 9th-century philosopher Adi Shankara popularized the "worship of the five forms" (Panchayatana puja) system among orthodox Brahmins of the Smarta tradition. This worship practice invokes the five deities Ganesha, Vishnu, Shiva, Devi, and Surya. Adi Shankara instituted the tradition primarily to unite the principal deities of these five major sects on an equal status. This formalized the role of Ganesha as a complementary deity.

 

SCRIPTURES

Once Ganesha was accepted as one of the five principal deities of Brahmanism, some Brahmins (brāhmaṇas) chose to worship Ganesha as their principal deity. They developed the Ganapatya tradition, as seen in the Ganesha Purana and the Mudgala Purana.

 

The date of composition for the Ganesha Purana and the Mudgala Purana - and their dating relative to one another - has sparked academic debate. Both works were developed over time and contain age-layered strata. Anita Thapan reviews comments about dating and provides her own judgement. "It seems likely that the core of the Ganesha Purana appeared around the twelfth and thirteenth centuries", she says, "but was later interpolated." Lawrence W. Preston considers the most reasonable date for the Ganesha Purana to be between 1100 and 1400, which coincides with the apparent age of the sacred sites mentioned by the text.

 

R.C. Hazra suggests that the Mudgala Purana is older than the Ganesha Purana, which he dates between 1100 and 1400. However, Phyllis Granoff finds problems with this relative dating and concludes that the Mudgala Purana was the last of the philosophical texts concerned with Ganesha. She bases her reasoning on the fact that, among other internal evidence, the Mudgala Purana specifically mentions the Ganesha Purana as one of the four Puranas (the Brahma, the Brahmanda, the Ganesha, and the Mudgala Puranas) which deal at length with Ganesha. While the kernel of the text must be old, it was interpolated until the 17th and 18th centuries as the worship of Ganapati became more important in certain regions. Another highly regarded scripture, the Ganapati Atharvashirsa, was probably composed during the 16th or 17th centuries.

 

BEYOND INDIA AND HINDUISM

Commercial and cultural contacts extended India's influence in western and southeast Asia. Ganesha is one of a number of Hindu deities who reached foreign lands as a result.

 

Ganesha was particularly worshipped by traders and merchants, who went out of India for commercial ventures. From approximately the 10th century onwards, new networks of exchange developed including the formation of trade guilds and a resurgence of money circulation. During this time, Ganesha became the principal deity associated with traders. The earliest inscription invoking Ganesha before any other deity is associated with the merchant community.

 

Hindus migrated to Maritime Southeast Asia and took their culture, including Ganesha, with them. Statues of Ganesha are found throughout the region, often beside Shiva sanctuaries. The forms of Ganesha found in Hindu art of Java, Bali, and Borneo show specific regional influences. The spread of Hindu culture to southeast Asia established Ganesha in modified forms in Burma, Cambodia, and Thailand. In Indochina, Hinduism and Buddhism were practiced side by side, and mutual influences can be seen in the iconography of Ganesha in the region. In Thailand, Cambodia, and among the Hindu classes of the Chams in Vietnam, Ganesha was mainly thought of as a remover of obstacles. Today in Buddhist Thailand, Ganesha is regarded as a remover of obstacles, the god of success.

 

Before the arrival of Islam, Afghanistan had close cultural ties with India, and the adoration of both Hindu and Buddhist deities was practiced. Examples of sculptures from the 5th to the 7th centuries have survived, suggesting that the worship of Ganesha was then in vogue in the region.

 

Ganesha appears in Mahayana Buddhism, not only in the form of the Buddhist god Vināyaka, but also as a Hindu demon form with the same name. His image appears in Buddhist sculptures during the late Gupta period. As the Buddhist god Vināyaka, he is often shown dancing. This form, called Nṛtta Ganapati, was popular in northern India, later adopted in Nepal, and then in Tibet. In Nepal, the Hindu form of Ganesha, known as Heramba, is popular; he has five heads and rides a lion. Tibetan representations of Ganesha show ambivalent views of him. A Tibetan rendering of Ganapati is tshogs bdag. In one Tibetan form, he is shown being trodden under foot by Mahākāla, (Shiva) a popular Tibetan deity. Other depictions show him as the Destroyer of Obstacles, and sometimes dancing. Ganesha appears in China and Japan in forms that show distinct regional character. In northern China, the earliest known stone statue of Ganesha carries an inscription dated to 531. In Japan, where Ganesha is known as Kangiten, the Ganesha cult was first mentioned in 806.

 

The canonical literature of Jainism does not mention the worship of Ganesha. However, Ganesha is worshipped by most Jains, for whom he appears to have taken over certain functions of Kubera. Jain connections with the trading community support the idea that Jainism took up Ganesha worship as a result of commercial connections. The earliest known Jain Ganesha statue dates to about the 9th century. A 15th-century Jain text lists procedures for the installation of Ganapati images. Images of Ganesha appear in the Jain temples of Rajasthan and Gujarat.

 

WIKIPEDIA

 

Uses: Anything relating to finance and money.

 

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1. The spiritual entity Qalb

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Adam

 

In the Urdu language the fleshy meat, (the heart) is known as dil, and in Arabic it is called fawad. The spiritual entity that is next to the heart is the Qalb and according to a Prophetic statement the heart and the Qalb are two separate entities.

 

Our solar system is the physical human sphere. There are other realms and spheres, for example the realm of the angels, the realm of the throne of God, the realm of the soul, the realm of the secrets, the realm of unification and the realm of the essence of God. These spheres and life forms inhabiting these spheres have existed before the eruption of the ball of fire, our Sun, which created our solar system. Ordinary angels were created alongside the creation of the souls when God commanded "Be" but the Archangels and the spiritual entities (which are placed inside the human body at birth) have existed in these realms before the formation of our solar system.

 

Many planets in our solar system were inhabited but subsequently these life forms became extinct. The remaining planets and their inhabitants are awaiting their destruction. The Archangels and the spiritual entities (of the human body) were created seventy thousand years before the command "Be."

 

Of these spiritual entities God placed the Qalb in the realm of love. It is with this that a human being is able to become connected with God. The Qalb acts like a telephone operator between God and the human being. A human being receives guidance and inspiration through it. Whereas the worship and the meditation done by the spiritual entities themselves can reach the highest realm, the Throne of God, with the aid of the Qalb. The Qalb itself, however cannot travel beyond the realm of the angels, as its place of origin is the Khuld, the lowest heaven in the realm of the angels.

 

The Qalb’s meditation is from within and its vibrating rosary is within the human skeleton (the heartbeat). People that failed to achieve this meditation of the Qalb in this lifetime will be regretful, even though they may be in paradise. As God has stated regarding those who will go to paradise, that do they, the inhabitants of paradise think that they will be equal to those who are elevated (reached higher realms by practicing the spiritual disciplines and becoming illuminated). As those that have achieved the meditation of the Qalb, they will enjoy its pleasures even in paradise when their Qalb will be vibrating with the Name of God.

After death physical worship ceases to exist and the people whose Qalb and spiritual entities are not strengthened and illuminated with the light of God are afflicted and distressed in their graves and their spiritual entities waste away. Whereas the illuminated and strengthened spiritual entities will go to the realm where the righteous will wait before the final judgement.

After the day of judgement a second body will be given, the illuminated spiritual entities along with the human soul will enter that body. The people that taught their spiritual entities, meditation, whereby the entities chanted the Name of God Allah in this life time will find that the spiritual entities will continue with this meditation even in the hereafter. Such people will continue to be elevated and exalted in the hereafter.

  

Those that were “blind of heart” (not illuminated) in this life time will be in darkness in that realm also, as this world was the place of action and effort. Those in the latter category will become quiescent.

Besides the Christians and the Jews the Hindu faith also holds a belief in these spiritual entities. The Hindu faith refers to them as Shaktian and the Muslims know them as Lata’if.

The Qalb is two inches, to the left of the heart. This spiritual entity is yellow in colour. When it is illuminated in a person, that person sees the colour yellow in their eyes. Not only this but there are many practitioners of alternative medicine who use the colours of these spiritual entities to heal people.

Most people regard their heart’s word, “inner feeling” to be truthful. If the hearts of people were indeed truthful, then why are all the people of the heart not united?

The Qalb of an ordinary person is in the sleeping or unconscious state and it does not possess any appreciation or awareness. Due to the dominance of the spirit of the self, the ego, and the Khannas, or due to the individual’s own simple- mindedness the heart can make judgements in error. Placing trust in a sleeping Qalb is foolish.

Only when the Name of God Allah, does vibrate in the heart does an appreciation of right and wrong and wisdom follow. At this stage the Qalb is known as the awakened Qalb. Thereafter due to the increase in the meditation by the Qalb, of the Name of God Allah, it is then known as the God-seeking Qalb. At this stage the heart is capable of preventing the person from doing wrong but it is still incapable of making a right or just decision. Thereafter and only when the Light and the rays of the Grace of God (theophany) start to descend upon that heart, is it known as the purified and illuminated Qalb that stands in the presence of God (witnessing Qalb).

 

A Prophetic statement:

“The mercy of God descends upon a broken heart and an afflicted grave.”

 

Thereafter when the heart reaches this stage then one must accept whatever it dictates, quietly without question because due to the rays of the Light and the Grace of God the spirit of the self, (ego) becomes completely illuminated, purified and at peace. God is then closer to that individual than that person’s jugular vein.

God then says, “I become his tongue with which he speaks and I become his hands with which he holds.”

   

2. The Human Soul

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Abraham

 

This is on the right side of the chest. This is awakened and illuminated by the meditation and one-pointed concentration on it. Once it becomes illuminated, a vibration similar to the heartbeat is felt on the right side of the chest. Then the Name of God, Ya Allah is matched with the vibrating pulse. The meditation of the soul is done in this way. At this point, there are now two spiritual entities meditating inside the human body, this is an advancement in rank and status and is better than the Qalb. The soul is a light red in colour and when it is awakened, it is able to travel to the realm of the souls (the station of the Archangel Gabriel). Anger and rage are attached to it that burn and turn into majesty.

  

3. The spiritual entity Sirri

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Moses

 

This spiritual entity is to the left of the centre of the chest. This is also awakened and illuminated by the meditation and one-pointed concentration on it with the Name of God, Ya Hayy, Ya Qayyum. Its colour is white and in the dream state or by spiritual separation from the physical body “transcendental meditation” it can journey to the realm of the secrets. Now there are three spiritual entities meditating within a person and its status is higher than the other two.

   

4. The spiritual entity Khaffi

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Jesus

 

This is to the right of the centre of the chest. It too is taught the Name of God Ya Wahid by meditation. It is green in colour and it can reach the realm of unification. Due to the meditation of four entities one's status is further increased.

 

5. The spiritual entity Akhfa

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Mohammed

 

This is situated at the centre of the chest. It is awakened by meditating on the Name of God, Ya Ahad. It is purple in colour and it too, is connected to that veil in the realm of unification behind which is the throne of God.

 

The hidden spiritual knowledge relating to these five spiritual entities was granted to the Prophets, one by one and half of the knowledge of every spiritual entity was granted from the Prophets to the Saints of their time. In this way there became ten parts of this knowledge. The Saints in turn passed this knowledge on to the spiritually favoured (Godly) who then had the benefit of the sacred knowledge.

 

The apparent knowledge of the seen is connected to the physical body, the spoken word, the human realm and the spirit of the self, this is for the ordinary mortals. This knowledge is contained in a book that has thirty parts. Spiritual knowledge was also given to the Prophets by revelation brought by Gabriel and for this reason it is known as the spiritual Holy Scripture.

 

Many of the verses of the Qur’an would sometimes be abolished, since the Prophet Mohammed would sometimes mention matters relating to this “hidden spiritual knowledge” before ordinary people, which was only meant for the special and Godly. Later this knowledge passed on spiritually from the chest of one Saint to another, and now it has become widespread by its publication in books.

  

6. The spiritual entity Anna

 

This spiritual entity is inside the head and is colourless. It is by the meditation on the Name of God Ya Hu that this spiritual entity reaches its pinnacle. It is this spiritual entity that when it becomes illuminated and powerful it can stand in the Presence of God, face to face, and communicate with God unobstructed. Only the extreme lovers of God reach this realm and station. Besides this there are a few and extremely exalted people who are granted additional spiritual entities, for example the spiritual entity Tifl-e-Nuri or a spiritual entity of the Godhead, Jussa-e-Tofiq-e-Ilahi, the spiritual status of such people is beyond understanding.

 

With the spiritual entity, Anna, God is seen in the dream state.

 

With the spiritual entity of the Godhead, God is seen in the “physical meditating state” when the spiritual entity itself leaves the human body and transcends to the essence of God.

 

Those possessing the spiritual entity, the Tifl-e-Nuri, see God whilst they are fully conscious.

 

It is these people who are the majesty and power of God in the world. They can either occupy the people by prescribing worship and austerities or by their spiritual grace send a person straight to the realm of God’s love. In their sight, concerning dispensing spiritual grace the believers and the non-believers, the dead and the living are all the same. Just as a thief became a Saint, in an instant, by the passing glimpse of the Saint Sheikh Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani, similarly, Abu-Bakr Havari and Manga the thief, became instant Saints by the passing glimpses of such Saints.

 

The five major Messengers were given knowledge of the five spiritual entities separately and in order of their appearance, as a result of which spirituality continued to prosper. With whichever spiritual entity you practice meditation you will be connected to the corresponding Messenger and become worthy of receiving spiritual grace (from that Messenger).

 

Whichever spiritual entity receives the rays of the Grace of God (favour), the Sainthood granted to that spiritual entity will be connected to the corresponding Prophet’s spiritual grace.

 

Access to seven realms and gaining elevated spiritual status in the seven heavens is obtained through these spiritual entities.

The functions of the spiritual entities inside the human body

 

Akhfa: Due to the spiritual entity, Akhfa a person is able to speak. In its absence a person may have a normal tongue but will be dumb. The difference between human beings and animals lies in the presence or the absence of these spiritual entities. At birth, if the entity, Akhfa was unable to enter the body for whatever reason, then a Prophet appointed for the rectification of this ailment would be called to treat the condition as a result of which the dumb would start to speak.

 

Sirri: A person is able to see due to the spiritual entity, Sirri. If it does not enter the body the person is blind from birth. An appointed Prophet had the duty to find and place the spiritual entity into the body, as a result of which the blind would start to see again.

Qalb: Without the spiritual entity of the Qalb, in the body, a person is like the animals, unacquainted, far from God, miserable and without purpose. Returning this entity into the body was the task of the Prophets also.

The miracles of the Prophets were also granted to the saints, in the form marvels and mystical wonders as a result of which even the impious and liberal became close to God. When a spiritual entity is returned by any allocated Saint or Prophet, the deaf, dumb and the blind are healed.

Anna: When the spiritual entity, Anna, fails to enter the body, a person is regarded as insane even though the brain may be functioning normally.

Khaffi: In the absence of the spiritual entity, Khafi, a person is deaf, even if the ears are opened wide.

These conditions can be caused by other defects in the body, and can be treated. There is no cure in the case, where the defect is caused by the absence of the associated spiritual entity except where a Prophet or a Saint intervenes and cures the defect.

Nafs, self: As a result of the spiritual entity of the self (ego) a persons mind is occupied with the material world and it is because of the spiritual entity Qalb that a persons direction turns towards God. For more detail visit www.goharshahi.org or visit asipk.com and for videos visit HH rags

 

I won't claim to be as big of a film aficionado as my friends Zachary, Sei Jin, or Robert but I do love a good film when there's not a great band playing on that night. While it's true that I'd probably see more films if I wasn't as avidly into music and photography, I still think I picked some good ones.

 

Note: I still have not seen Burn After Reading, Revolution Road, or Doubt which is why these films may not have been included in this list. In addition, I haven't nor do I plan on seeing The Wrestler...I'm conflicted because I love Darren Aronofsky as a director but I hate wrestling.

 

1. Synechdoche:

 

The best film of this year was Synecdoche. I saw it in the theater twice. It's the kind of film you can see multiple times and still gain more and different insights about. It's the kind of film that brings you back to the years when films were pure and where you actually felt a huge range of emotions about the characters and what happens to them...and it's the kind of film that you can relate to in a way that feels so personal.

 

In typical Charlie Kaufman fashion, this is like bringing a work of experimental fiction to the screen. It is disjointed, with mixed up non linear time frames and the main character's perspective, who it seems the film takes almost complete direction from, is just as confused. This is not a film you see to entertain you. This is the kind of film you see because it reminds you how to be a human being,

 

Beyond that, there's something incredibly personal in this for me. I didn't grow up in Schenectady (or Synecdoche), NY but there's the same feeling that pervades this town that one could sense in Rochester, where I did grow up. Philip Seymour Hoffman, who is probably just below Daniel Day-Lewis in terms of acting ability, is actually from a suburb of my home town. His mother is a judge there and he's come back several times to the local independent theater to thank his supporters. What he brings to this role is immeasurable. It's really something. There's a scene where he reads the obituaries in the paper in the morning and I swear my mother in law did the exact same thing in the exact same way in Rochester the day after Christmas. It's almost uncanny the way upstate NY is represented.

 

In addition, there are all kinds of connections between creating art on a massive and minute scale and NYC vs. a rural domain. It's about creating something real from the human story. Most of all, there is love but it's not about love. There is loss but it's not about loss. There is theater but it's not about theater.

 

More than anything, pure and simple, this is a film about life.

 

2. My Winnipeg

 

If, like he states, every film is autobiographical, then Guy Maddin grew up in a lighthouse that was half bordello, half hairdressing shop and orphanage where his parents harvested cerebrospinal fluid from children every night to stay younger. And I'm not even going to get into the glass legs full of beer that an ex lover wears.

 

Needless to say, considering the range of bizarre and creative scenarios that I've seen in Maddin's films, it's hard for me to think that they are truly autobiographical. In My Winnipeg, there's a feeling of relatively less of the fantastical even though these elements are present, just a bit more subdued. So, if unlike me you haven't seen Guy Maddin's other films, you might actually believe that this time he's really showing you an honest portrayal of what it was like for him to grow up in Winnipeg.

 

I think there's something magical about the way Guy Maddin has perfected the art of using what seems like low fi black and white filming to create something truly magical. My Winnipeg continues this tradition but what was unique to this film was how he chronicles the changing of the city and you can tell it's an utterly personal and painful thing for him to watch it all happen. Last, Maddin is utterly Canadian, especially here, and I love that.

 

3. Young at Heart

 

I don't know why but I tend to not really like documentaries. I'd much rather sit through a work of Michel Gondry work of super creative fiction that go see a documentary. Like I said, I really don't know why because I am really fascinated in general by the unique human experience but when I pay for a film and invest the time and energy to watch, I think a big part of me wants to escape.

 

That said, Young at Heart is easily one of the best and most unique documentaries out there. It's about the Young at Heart chorus, which you have to be 70 years of age or over to be eligible to join. These are seniors in their last throes of life that suddenly have a huge meaning to get them through their days, something that undoubtebly makes the sorrow of losing so many loved ones just a little more bearable. The Young at Heart chorus has performed all over the world and the bright personalities of these singers is nothing short of inspiring.

 

On a personal level, what really made this film a joy for me is the director's choices in terms of what songs the chorus would cover. Amongst these, Sonic Youth, Talking Heads, and Alain Toussaint stick out in my mind but the idea of brining some of these pieces to such an unusual and older group of singers was fascinating and almost surreal. In any case, it makes for an interesting story.

 

4. Blindness

 

If you're looking for an accurate adaptation to José Saramago's novel, look no farther than Blindness. That said, read the book first. Julianne Moore is especially brilliant in this film and it's shot in a unique way that I think compliments the story. Basically, I think it's the best adaptation that could have been made and this is coming from someone who loves Saramago's novels dearly.

  

That said, I wasn't having vision problems at all until an hour after the film finished. I figured it was purely hypochondria that all of a sudden I had intense pain in my left eye. Figuring on the symptoms being psychosomatic, I tried to ignore the pain and didn't go to an opthamologist for five days. Turns out when I did that something had actually flown into my eye and cut open my cornea. This, in turn got infected hence the incredible pain. Of course, I didn't realize the dilated pupil effect was going to last so long. Try shooting TV on the Radio when everything you see is just a blurry stream of light. And that's when I thanked God for autofocus.

 

5. Frozen River

 

It feels kind of like a documentary but I don't think technically it is. Still, it's a story that needs to be told if only for the fact that it is adept in showing how in various parts of the border between the United States and Canada, human smuggling is occurring. The film takes place in upstate NY and immigrants are smuggled across a frozen river on an Indian reservation in the back of a car trunk. It's one of the most suspenseful films I've seen and I think more than anything else, it shows the utter materialism in America. Here's a single mom trying to raise two kids after her husband took the money and ran off to a casino. She's working at the dollar store and all the family has to eat in the house is popcorn and Tang and yet she's still desperately trying to hang on to her huge television. Gee, I wonder what's wrong with this country.

  

6. The Reader

 

I just saw this yesterday and I feel that, though it's a good film, it's possible that one of the films I haven't yet seen may have replaced this one. That said, this is another really challenging story based on the novel of the same name by Bernhard Schlink, which I read about five years ago. Because I haven't read it recently, I can't say if the film is completely accurate to the novel but, to my memory, it did seem to preserve the essence of it.

 

I feel that no matter what else happens throughout history, one of the things we'll always try to understand is how the Holocaust was allowed to happen by so many. It seems beyond something that human beings could be capable of and yet, we're the very ones responsible in perhaps the greatest atrocity that has and ever will happen.

 

We are introduced to Hannah (played by Kate Winslet), the lead character, the same way that the protagonist (played by Ralph Fiennes) is. In other words, we know nothing about her past or the decisions she's made. Only that she's an incredibly beautiful woman who is easy to fall in love with. The 16 year old version of Ralph Fiennes is as impressionable as most boys his age and this is his first taste of romantic love and intimacy. Spending time with Hannah consumes him for a summer and then just as quickly, she's gone.

 

Fastforward eight years later. A mother and daughter who are survivors of Auschwitz have written a memoir implicating this very same Hannah. The main protagonist, now studying law, must sit through the testimony. The question being asked, more than anything is...how could you let this happen? How could anyone, whether hired to be a guard or not, let 300 people burn to death in a church? It seems in Hannah's case that it's a case similar to what is found in the Stanley Milgram experiences...she was just being obedient and doing her job.

 

I don't want to give any more of the film or the novel away for people who have not seen or read it but I feel that it's important to understand why these things occur to prevent them from ever happening again. What I like most about Bernhard Schlink's story is there seems to be a strong connection between ignorance and illiteracy and obedience. In other words, Hannah is before and at the trial, a rather simple person and that leads to, atleast in part, her ability to follow orders and not question or revolt. Her character goes through a bit of a transformation in this respect but I don't want to reveal anymore for those still wanting to see/read the story.

 

7. MILK

 

It's probably safe to say that Sean Penn is another actor whose versatility never ceases to amaze me. I have not yet seen The Times of Harvey Milk but I think this film is really informative on his life, even though it's not a true documentary. Splicing original footage with the new, it does feel true to the story in a way that most films of this nature aren't and it also seems that Gus Van Sant is aptly matched with this story to tell.

 

The one thing that makes this film great is, as I already mentioned, the performances. The other thing, perhaps much more crucial, is to understand how the human rights movement in terms of equal rights regardless of sexual orientation began in America. There were a great deal of things I learned but perhaps above all these was the sense that, even though we have a long way to go, we have come so far.

 

I think what I loved most about Harvey Milk wasn't necessarily that he was a photographer, a man that was gay, a politician, or even that he seemed very charming. The thing I liked most about Harvey was that he reached a point in his life where he realized he had something great in him and he had to do something with the time he had left. He understood the danger involved and he knew it wasn't going to be easy. But, I think, or atleast the film gives me the impression, that he would rather have a shortened life being true to himself and doing something he believed in then waste his life to old age not doing these things. In this way, he seemed destined to personal greatness, even though it happened much later than when many people get started on it.

  

8. A Christmas Tale/Un conte de Noël

 

This was another really difficult film to watch because it really delves into the tension inherent in a French family where one sibling is banished and the mother needs a transplant or she will soon die of Cancer. It's interesting to see if, like me, you are a fan of Catherine Deneuve but it also stars Mathieu Amalric as the son cast out who was the protagonist in The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, which was one of the top films of last year imo.

 

There's the essence of poetry in some of these scenes and I think it's one of those films that seems removed from all the Hollywood junk produced in America and instead shows a realistic story. I didn't agree with some of the actions of the characters in the film but I do think it showed some interesting characters struggling through many different situations. In any film I can remember seeing previously where a parent is dying of Cancer, there's some heartwarming breakthrough in estranged relationships...you'll have to watch this film for yourself to see if this happens here.

  

9. Let the Right One in/Låt den rätte komma in

 

This is another film I saw in the theater twice...mainly, it's just such a joy to watch on a cinematography level. It's so beautiful the way the color and depth of field work together and, though I've never been to Sweden, it seems like the perfect setting for this story.

 

That said, it's a very unusual sort of vampire film and, though there is some gore, especially at a pool scene towards the end, it's overall about the relationship that develops between a young boy and his girlfriend, who happens to be a vampire. The plot is twisted in a way I'm not sure most Americans understood, especially the ending. It's a subtlety about the nature of why Eli chose Oskar and the continuation of another lifetime where Eli lives and many others around her die. But. like Oskar, it's difficult for the audience not to be enchanted and think Eli is just some beautiful 12 year old girl who happens to be a vampire and wants some companionship.

  

10. The Dark Knight

 

I know...I know...its such a mainstream film filled with CGI and Hollywood all over it. And, though Christian Bale is a tremendous actor, his talent is really wasted in films like this after seeing him in The Machinist. Of course, the best acting is done by Heath Ledger as the Joker who plays it in a way that really seems above and beyond any other portrayal ever done.

 

I think one thing that makes The Dark Knight particularly scary is the sense of a character who kills just purely to kill...who really almost exhibits the random violence that some human beings are capable of. On an indie level, we saw this last year with Javier Bardem's portrayal of Anton in No Country For Old Men. This is a much different film but I think that theme is similar.

 

I think this is a complex film that I was really frankly surprised about. Mainly, it works on multiple levels. There are alot of great special effects that costed the studio millions. But, it works on an intellectual in that, unlike most Hollywood blockbusters of the superhero nature, it shows a greater complexity in terms of both the hope and darkness inherent in human beings. The film isn't perfect but there's a scene with two boats that makes this film go into my top ten. I'm not sure if the outcome is even realistic of what might happen in life but its something I'd like to believe would happen, even with all the random chaos and violence that continues all around us.

The Greatest

Mumbaikar of All..

Huge and Tall

Hears you Cry

Hears Your Call

Saves you each Time

before You Fall

whatever your religiosity

he removes obstacles

he sees there are no pitfalls

no terrorists can breach

our city's walls

Mutual Coexistence

Be Proud Indians

on our Souls he scrawls

our greatest enemy

our bigotry

our narrow mindedness

our hate for each other

that hits the nation

first of all

before being

a hindu muslim christian

be an Indian

says it all

miljul ke rehne

main hi bhaliee hai

our mantra

of peace

the greatest cure all

dont sell your country

for american dollars

or saudi riyal

  

from wikipedia

 

Ganesha (Sanskrit: गणेश; Gaṇeśa; listen (help·info), also spelled Ganesa or Ganesh) is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in Hinduism[8]. Although he is known by many other attributes, Ganesha's elephant head makes him easy to identify.[9] Several texts relate mythological anecdotes associated with his birth and exploits, and explain his distinct iconography. Ganesha is worshipped as the lord of beginnings and as the lord of obstacles (Vighnesha),[10] patron of arts and sciences, and the god of intellect and wisdom.[11] He is honoured with affection at the start of any ritual or ceremony and invoked as the "Patron of Letters" at the beginning of any writing.[12]

 

Ganesha appears as a distinct deity in clearly-recognizable form beginning in the fourth to fifth centuries, during the Gupta Period. His popularity rose quickly, and he was formally included as one of the five primary deities of Smartism (a Hindu denomination) in the ninth century. During this period, a sect of devotees (called Ganapatya; Sanskrit: गाणपत्य; gāṇapatya) who identify Ganesha as the supreme deity was formed.[13] The principal scriptures dedicated to his worship are the Ganesha Purana, the Mudgala Purana, and the Ganapati Atharvashirsa.

 

Ganesha is one of the most-worshipped divinities in India.[14][15] Worship of Ganesha is considered complementary with the worship of other forms of the divine, and various Hindu sects worship him regardless of other affiliations.[16][17][18] Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains, Buddhists, and beyond India.

 

Ganesha has many other titles and epithets, including Ganapati and Vighneśvara. The Hindu title of respect Shri (Sanskrit: श्री; śrī, also spelled Sri or Shree) is often added before his name. One popular form of Ganesha worship is by chanting one of the Ganesha Sahasranamas, which literally means "a thousand names of Ganesha". Each name in the sahasranama conveys a different meaning and symbolises a different aspect of Ganesha. There are at least two different versions of the Ganesha Sahasranama. One of these is drawn from the Ganesha Purana, a Hindu scripture that venerates Ganesha.[24]

 

The name Ganesha is a Sanskrit compound, joining the words gana (Sanskrit: गण; gaṇa), meaning a group, multitude, or categorical system and isha (Sanskrit: ईश; īśa), meaning lord or master.[25][26] The word gaņa in association with Ganesha is often taken to refer to the gaņas, a troop of semi-divine beings that form part of the retinue of Shiva (also spelled "Śiva").[27] The term more generally means a category, class, community, association, or corporation.[28] Some commentators interpret the name "Lord of the Gaņas" to mean "Lord of created categories," such as the elements, etc.[29] The translation "Lord of Hosts" may convey a familiar sense to Western readers. Ganapati (Sanskrit: गणपति; gaṇapati) is a synonym for Ganesha, being a compound composed of gaṇa, meaning "group", and pati, meaning "ruler" or "lord").[30]

 

Vināyaka is a common name for Ganesha both in the Purāṇas and in Buddhist Tantras.[31] This name is reflected in the naming of the eight famous Ganesha (aṣṭavināyaka) temples in Maharashtra.[32] The name Vignesha, meaning "Lord of Obstacles", refers to his primary function in Hindu mythology as being able to both create and remove obstacles (vighna).

 

One of the main names for Ganesha in the Tamil language is Pille or Pillaiyar, which means "Little Child".[33] A. K. Narain differentiates these terms by saying that pille means a "child" and pillaiyar a "noble child", and adds that the words pallu, pella, and pell in the Dravidian family of languages signify "tooth or tusk of an elephant" but more generally "elephant".[34] In discussing the name Pillaiyar, Anita Raina Thapan notes that since the Pali word pillaka has the significance of "a young elephant" it is possible that pille originally meant "the young of the elephant".[35]

 

Ganesha is a popular figure in Indian art.[36] Unlike some deities, representations of Ganesha show wide variation with distinct patterns changing over time.[37][38][39] He may be portrayed standing, dancing, taking heroic action against demons, playing with his family as a boy, sitting down, or engaging in a remarkable range of contemporary situations.

 

Ganesha images were prevalent in many parts of India by the sixth century.[40] The figure shown to the right is typical of Ganesha statuary from 900-1200, after Ganesha had been well-established as an independent deity with his own cult. This example features some of Ganesha's common iconographic elements. A virtually identical statue has been dated between 973-1200 by Martin-Dubost[41] and another similar statue is dated circa twelfth century by Pal.[42] He has the head of an elephant and a big belly. This statue has four arms, which is common in depictions of Ganesha . He holds his own broken tusk in his lower-right hand and holds some form of delicacy, which he samples with his trunk in his lower-left hand. The motif of Ganesha turning his trunk sharply to his left to taste a sweet which he holds in his lower-left hand is a particularly archaic feature.[43] A more primitive statue in one of the Ellora Caves with this general form has been dated to the 7th century.[44] Details of the other hands are difficult to make out on the statue shown; in this standard configuration, Ganesha typically holds either an axe or a goad in one upper arm and a noose in the other upper arm as symbols of his ability to cut through obstacles or to create them as needed.

 

The influence of this old constellation of iconographic elements can still be seen in contemporary representations of Ganesha. In one modern form, the only variation from these old elements is that the lower-right hand does not hold the broken tusk but rather is turned toward the viewer in the gesture of protection or "no fear" (abhaya mudra).[45][46] The same combination of four arms and attributes occurs in statues of Ganesha dancing,[47] which is a very popular theme.[48]

Ganesha has been represented with the head of an elephant since the early stages of his appearance in Indian art.[50] Puranic myths provide many explanations for how he got this form.[51] One of his popular forms (called Heramba-Ganapati) has five elephant heads, and other less-common variations in the number of heads are known.[52]

 

While some texts say that Ganesha was born with an elephant head, in most stories he acquires the head later, with several accounts given.[53] The most common motif in these stories is that Ganesha was born with a human head and body and that Shiva beheaded him when Ganesha came between Shiva and Parvati. Shiva then replaced Ganesha's original head with that of an elephant.[54] Details of the battle and where the replacement head came from vary according to different sources.[55] In another story, when Ganesha was born his mother Parvati showed off her new baby to the other gods. Unfortunately, the god Shani (Saturn) – who is said to have the "evil eye" – looked at him, causing the baby's head to be burned to ashes. The god Vishnu came to the rescue and replaced the missing head with that of an elephant.[56] Another story tells that Ganesha is created directly by Shiva's laughter. Shiva became concerned that Ganesha was too alluring, so he cursed Ganesha to have the head of an elephant and a protruding belly.[57]

 

The earliest name referring to Ganesha is Ekadanta ("One Tusk"), noting his single tusk; the other is broken off. [58] Some of the earliest images of Ganesha show him holding his broken tusk.[59] The importance of this distinctive feature is reflected in the Mudgala Purana, which states that the name of Ganesha's second incarnation is Ekadanta.[60]

 

Ganesha's protruding belly appears as a distinctive attribute in his earliest statuary, which dates to the Gupta period (4th to 6th centuries).[61] This feature is so important that according to the Mudgala Purana two different incarnations of Ganesha use names based on it, Lambodara ("Pot Belly", or literally "Hanging Belly") and Mahodara ("Great Belly").[62] Both names are Sanskrit compounds describing his belly (Sanskrit: udara).[63] The Brahmanda Purana says that he has the name Lambodara because all the universes (i.e., cosmic eggs; Sanskrit brahmāṇḍas) of the past, present, and future are present in Ganesha.[64][65]

 

The number of Ganesha's arms varies; his best-known forms have between two and sixteen arms.[66] Many depictions of Ganesha feature four arms, which is mentioned in Puranic sources and codified as a standard form in some iconographic texts.[67] His earliest images had two arms.[68][69] Forms with fourteen and twenty arms appeared in Central India during the 9th and 10th century.[70]

 

The serpent is a common element in Ganesha iconography, where it appears in many forms.[71][72] According to the Ganesha Purana, Ganesha wrapped the serpent Vāsuki around his neck.[73][74] Other common depictions of snakes include use as a sacred thread (Sanskrit: yajñyopavīta),[75][76] wrapped around the stomach as a belt, held in a hand, coiled at the ankles, and as a throne. Upon Ganesha's forehead there may be either a third eye or a sectarian mark (Sanskrit: tilaka) of Shiva showing three horizontal lines.[77][78] The Ganesha Purana prescribes both a tilaka mark as well as a crescent moon for the forehead.[79][80][81] A distinct form called Bhālacandra ("Moon on the Forehead") includes that iconographic element.[82][83]

 

The colors most often associated with Ganesha are red [84] and yellow, but specific other colors are prescribed in certain forms.[85] Many examples of color associations with specific meditation forms are prescribed in the Sritattvanidhi, a treatise on iconography that includes a section on variant forms of Ganesha. For example, white is associated with his representations as Heramba-Ganapati and Rina-Mochana-Ganapati.("Ganapati Who Releases From Bondage").[86] Ekadanta-Ganapati is visualized as blue during meditation on that form.[

The earliest Ganesha images are without a Vahana (mount).[88] Of the eight incarnations of Ganesha described in the Mudgala Purana, Ganesha has a mouse in five of them, but uses a lion in his incarnation as Vakratunda, a peacock in his incarnation of Vikata, and Shesha, the divine serpent, in his incarnation as Vighnaraja.[89] Of the four incarnations of Ganesha listed in the Ganesha Purana, Mohotkata has a lion, Mayūreśvara has a peacock, Dhumraketu has a horse, and Gajanana has a rat.[90][91] Jain depictions of Ganesha show his vahana variously as a mouse,[92] an elephant,[93] a tortoise, a ram, or a peacock.[94]

 

Mouse as vahana

 

Ganesha riding on his mouse. A sculpture at the Vaidyeshwara temple in Talakkadu, Karnataka, India. Note the red flowers offered by the devotees.Ganesha is often shown riding on, or attended by a mouse.[95][96] Martin-Dubost says that in central and western India the rat began to appear as the principal vehicle in sculptures of Gaṇeśa in the 7th century A.D., where the rat was always placed close to his feet.[97] The mouse as a mount first appears in written sources in the Matsya Purana, and later in the Brahmananda Purana and Ganesha Purana where Ganesha uses it as his vehicle only in his last incarnation.[98] The Ganapati Atharvashirsa includes a meditation verse on Ganesha that describes the mouse appearing on his flag.[99] The names Mūṣakavāhana ("Mouse-mount") and Ākhuketana ("Rat-banner") appear in the Ganesha Sahasranama.[100]

 

Devotee literature provides a variety of interpretations regarding what the mouse means. Michael Wilcockson says it symbolizes those who wish to overcome desires and be less selfish.[101] Martin-Dubost thinks it is a symbol of the fact that Ganesha, like the rat, penetrates even the most secret places.[102] Krishan gives a completely different interpretation, noting that the rat is a destructive creature and a menace to crops. The Sanskrit word mūṣaka (mouse) is derived from the root mūṣ which means "stealing, robbing". It was essential to subdue the rat as a destructive pest, a type of vighna (impediment) that needed to be overcome. In this theory, showing Ganesha as master of the rat proclaims his function as Vigneshvara and gives evidence of his possible role as a folk grāmata-devatā (village deity) who later rose to greater prominence.[103]

Buddhi

Ganesha is considered to be the Lord of Intelligence.[108] In Sanskrit, the word buddhi is a feminine noun that is variously translated as intelligence, wisdom, or intellect.[109] The concept of buddhi is closely associated with the personality of Ganesha, especially in the Puranic period, where many stories showcase his cleverness and love of intelligence. One of Ganesha's names in the Ganesha Purana and the Ganesha Sahasranama is Buddhipriya.[110] This name also appears in a special list of twenty-one names that Gaṇeśa says are of special importance at the end of the Ganesha Sahasranama.[111] The word priya can mean "fond of", but in a marital context, it can mean "lover" or "husband". Buddhipriya probably refers to Ganesha's well-known association with intelligence.

 

This association with wisdom also appears in the name Buddha, which appears as a name of Ganesha in the second verse of the Ganesha Purana version of the Ganesha Sahasranama.[112] The positioning of this name at the beginning of the Ganesha Sahasranama reveals the name's importance. Bhaskararaya's commentary on the Ganesha Sahasranama says that this name means that the Buddha was an avatar of Ganesha.[113] This interpretation is not widely known even among Ganapatya. Buddha is not mentioned in the lists of Ganesha's incarnations given in the main sections of the Ganesha Purana and Mudgala Purana. Bhaskararaya also provides a more general interpretation of this name as simply meaning that Ganesha's very form is "eternal elightenment" (nityabuddaḥ), so he is named Buddha.

  

[edit] Aum

 

Ganesha (Devanagari) Aum jewelGanesha is identified with the Hindu mantra Aum (ॐ, also called Om, Omkara, oṃkāra, or Aumkara). The term oṃkārasvarūpa ("Aum is his form") in connection with Ganesha refers to this belief that he is the personification of the primal sound.[114] This association is attested in the Ganapati Atharvashirsa. The relevant passage is translated by Paul Courtright as follows:

 

You are Brahmā, Vişņu, and Rudra [Śiva]. You are Agni, Vāyu, and Sūrya. You are Candrama. You are earth, space, and heaven. You are the manifestation of the mantra "Oṃ".[115]

 

A variant version of this passage is translated by Chinmayananda as follows:

 

(O Lord Ganapati!) You are (the Trinity) Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesa. You are Indra. You are fire and air. You are the sun and the moon. You are Brahman. You are (the three worlds) Bhuloka, Antariksha-loka, and Swargaloka. You are Om. (that is to say, You are all this).[116]

 

Some devotees see similarities between the shape of his body and the shape of Om in the Devanāgarī and Tamil scripts.[117]

  

[edit] First chakra

Ganesha is associated with the first or "root" chakra (mūlādhāra). This association is attested in the Ganapati Atharvashirsa. As translated by Courtright this passage reads:

 

You continually dwell in the sacral plexus at the base of the spine [mūlādhāra cakra].[118]

 

A variant version of this passage is translated by Chinmayananda:

 

You have a permanent abode (in every being) at the place called "Muladhara".[119]

  

[edit] Family and consorts

 

Shiva and Pārvatī giving a bath to Gaṇeśa. Kangra miniature, 18th century. Allahbad Museum, New Delhi.[120]For more details on this topic, see Consorts of Ganesha.

While Ganesha is popularly considered to be the son of Shiva and Parvati, the Puranic myths relate several different versions of his birth.[121][122] These include versions in which he is created by Shiva,[123] by Parvati,[124] by Shiva and Parvati,[125] or in a mysterious manner that is discovered by Shiva and Parvati.[126]

 

The family includes his brother Skanda, who is also called Karttikeya, Murugan, and other names.[127][128] Regional differences dictate the order of their births. In North India, Skanda is generally said to be the elder brother while in the South, Ganesha is considered the first born.[129] Prior to the emergence of Ganesha, Skanda had a long and glorious history as an important martial deity from about 500 BCE to about 600 CE, when his worship declined significantly in North India. The period of this decline is concurrent with the rise of Ganesha. Several stories relate episodes of sibling rivalry between Ganesha and Skanda[130] and may reflect historical tensions between the respective sects.[131]

 

Ganesha's marital status varies widely in mythological stories and the issue has been the subject of considerable scholarly review.[132] One pattern of myths identifies Ganesha as a brahmacharin (brahmacārin; celibate).[133] Another pattern associates him with the concepts of Buddhi (intellect), Siddhi (spiritual power), and Riddhi (prosperity); these qualities are sometimes personified by goddesses who are considered to be Ganesha's wives. A third pattern couples Ganesha with the goddess of culture and the arts, Sarasvati, and the goddess of luck and prosperity, Lakshmi, symbolically indicating that these qualities always accompany one other. A fourth pattern mainly prevalent in the Bengal region links Ganesha with the banana tree, Kala Bo.

  

[edit] Buddhi, Siddhi, and Riddhi

 

Shri Mayureshwar, MorgaonThe Ganesha Purana and the Mudgala Purana contain descriptions of Ganesha flanked by Buddhi and Siddhi.[134] In Chapter I.18.24-39 of the Ganesha Purana, Brahmā performs worship in honour of Ganesha. During the puja, Ganesha himself causes Buddhi and Siddhi to appear so that Brahmā can offer them back to Ganesha. Ganesha accepts them as offerings.[135] In a variant, the two are born from Brahmā's mind and are given by Brahmā to Ganesha.[135] Buddhi and Siddhi are best identified as his consorts in the Shiva Purana, where Ganesha cleverly wins the two desirable daugters of Prajāpati over Skanda.[136] The Shiva Purana version says that Ganesha had two sons: Kshema (Kşema, prosperity) and Labha (profit). The 1975 Hindi film Jai Santoshi Maa shows Ganesha married to Riddhi and Siddhi and having a daughter named Santoshi Ma, the goddess of satisfaction. However, this story has no Puranic basis. Anita Raina Thapan and Lawrence Cohen cite Santoshi Ma's cult as evidence of Ganesha's continuing evolution as a popular deity.[137][138]

 

Representations of Ganesha's consorts can be found aside from Puranic texts. In the Ganesha Temple at Morgaon (the central shrine for the regional aṣṭavināyaka complex), Buddhi and Siddhi stand to the right and left sides of the Ganesha image.[139] In northern India, the two female figures are said to be Siddhi and Riddhi; Riddhi substitutes for Buddhi with no Puranic basis.[140] The Ajitāgama describes a Tantric form of Ganesha called Haridra Ganapati as turmeric-colored and flanked by two unnamed wives distinct from shaktis.[141] The word "wives" (Sanskrit: दारा; dārā) is specifically used (Sanskrit: दारायुगलम्; dārāyugalam).[142]

  

[edit] Interpretations of relationships

 

Ganesha with the Ashta (meaning eight) Siddhi. The Ashtasiddhi are associated with Ganesha. Painted by Raja Ravi Varma (1848-1906).In discussing the Shiva Purana version, Courtright comments that while Ganesha is sometimes depicted as sitting between these two feminine deities, "these women are more like feminine emanations of his androgynous nature, Shaktis rather than spouses having their own characters and spouses."[143] Ludo Rocher says that "descriptions of Gaṇeśa as siddhi-buddhi-samanvita 'accompanied by, followed by siddhi and buddhi.' often seem to mean no more than that, when Gaṇeśa is present, siddhi 'success' and buddhi 'wisdom' are not far behind. Such may well have been the original conception, of which the marriage was a later development."[144] In verse 49a of the Ganesha Purana version of the Ganesha Sahasranama, one of Ganesha's names is Ŗddhisiddhipravardhana ("Enhancer of material and spiritual success"). The Matsya Purana identifies Gaṇesha as the "owner" of Riddhi (prosperity) and Buddhi (wisdom).[145] In discussing the northern Indian sources, Cohen remarks:

 

They are depersonalized figures, interchangeable, and given their frequent depiction fanning Gaṇeśa are often referred to as dasīs — servants. Their names represent the benefits accrued by the worshipper of Gaṇeśa, and thus Gaṇeśa is said to be the owner of Ṛddhi and Siddhi; he similarly functions as the father of Śubha (auspiciousness) and Lābha (profit), a pair similar to the Śiva Purāṇa's Kṣema (prosperity) and Lābha. Though in Varanasi the paired figures were usually called Ṛddhi and Siddhi, Gaṇeśa's relationship to them was often vague. He was their mālik, their owner; they were more often dasīs than patnīs (wives).[146]

 

His relationship with the Ashtasiddhi — the eight spiritual attaintments obtained by the practice of yoga — is also of this depersonalized type. In later iconography, these eight marvellous powers are represented by a group of young women who surround Ganesha.[147] Raja Ravi Varma's painting (shown in this section) illustrates a recent example of this iconographic form. The painting includes fans, which establish the feminine figures as attendants.

  

[edit] Motif of shaktis

 

Ganesha in his form as Mahāganapati with a shakti. From the Sritattvanidhi (19th century).A distinct type of iconographic image of Ganesha shows him with a single human-looking shakti (śakti).[148] According to Ananda Coomaraswamy, the oldest known depiction of Ganesha with a shakti of this type dates from the sixth century.[149] The consort lacks a distinctive personality or iconographic repertoire. According to Cohen and Alice Getty, the appearance of this shakti motif parallels the emergence of tantric branches of the Ganapatya cult. Six distinct forms of "Shakti Ganapati" can be linked to the Ganapatyas.[150] Of the thirty-two standard meditation forms for Ganesha that appear in the Sritattvanidhi (Śrītattvanidhi), several include a shakti.[151][152] A common form of this motif shows Ganesha seated with the shakti upon his left hip, holding a bowl of flat cakes or round sweets, with him turning his trunk to his left to touch the tasty food. In some tantric forms of this image, the gesture is modified to take on erotic overtones.[153] Some tantric variants of this form are described in the Śāradātilaka Tantram.[154]

 

Prithvi Kumar Agrawala has traced at least six different lists of fifty or more aspects or forms of Ganesha each with their specific female consorts or shaktis.[155][156] In these lists, goddess names such as Hrī, Śrī, and Puṣṭī are found. However, Buddhi, Siddhi, and Riddhi do not appear on any of these lists, which also do not provide any details about the personalities or distinguishing iconographic forms for these shaktis. Agrawala concludes that all of the lists were derived from one original set of names. The earliest of the lists appears in the Nārada Purāṇa (I.66.124-38), and a similar list with minor variations appears in the Ucchiṣṭagaṇapati Upāsanā. These lists are of two types. In the first type the names of various forms of Ganesha are given with a clear-cut pairing of a named shakti for that form. The second type, as found in the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa (II.IV.44.63-76) and the commentary of Rāghavabhaṭṭa on the Śāradātilaka (I.115), gives fifty or more names of Ganesha collectively in one group, with the names of the shaktis provided collectively in a second group. The second type of list poses problems in separating and properly connecting the names into pairs due to ambiguities in the formation of Sanskrit compound words.

  

[edit] Worship and festivals

 

Celebrations of Ganesh by the Indian and Sri Lankan Tamil community in Paris, FranceWhether the reason has to do with a religious ceremony, a new vehicle, students taking exams, sessions of devotional chanting, or beginning a business, Ganesha is worshipped. Throughout India and the Hindu culture, Ganesha is the first icon placed into any new home or abode. Devotees widely believe that wherever there is Ganesha, there is success and prosperity. By calling on him people believe that he will come to their aid and grant them success in their endeavours.

 

The worship of Ganesha is considered complementary with the worship of other deities.[157] Hindus of all sects begin prayers, important undertakings, and religious ceremonies with an invocation to Ganesha. Ganesha is also adored by dancers and musicians, who begin their performances of arts such as Bharatnatyam dance with a prayer to him, particularly in South India.[158] Mantras such as Om Shri Gaṇeshāya Namah ("Om, salutation to the Illustrious Ganesha"), and others, are often used. One of the most famous mantras associated with Ganesha is Om Gaṃ Ganapataye Namah (literally, "Om, Gaṃ, Salutation to the Lord of Hosts").

 

Devotees offer Ganesha various sweets, such as modaka, small sweet balls (laddus) and others.[159]. He is often shown carrying a bowl of sweets, called a modakapātra, which is one of his iconographic elements.[160] Because of his identification with the color red, he is often worshipped with things such as red sandalwood paste (raktacandana),[161] or red flowers. Dūrvā grass (Cynodon dactylon) and various other materials are used in his worship.[162]

  

[edit] Ganesh Chaturthi

 

A large Ganesha statue at a Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, 2004There is an important festival honouring Ganesha that is celebrated for ten days starting from Ganesh Chaturthi.[163] This festival culminates on the day of Ananta Chaturdashi when images (murtis) of Ganesha are immersed into the most convenient body of water.

 

The Ganapati festival is celebrated by Hindus with great devotional fervour. While it is most popular in the state of Maharashtra,[164] it is performed all over India.[165] In Mumbai, the festival assumes huge proportions. On the last day of the festival, millions of people of all ages descend onto the streets leading up to the sea, dancing and singing, to the rhythmic accompaniment of drums and cymbals.

 

In 1893, Lokmanya Tilak reshaped the annual Ganesh festival from private family celebrations into a grand public event. [166] He did so "to bridge the gap between the Brahmins and the non-Brahmins and find an appropiate context in which to build a new grassroots unity between them" in his nationalistic strivings against the British in Maharashtra.[167][168] Thus, Tilak chose Ganesha as a rallying point for Indian protest against British rule because of his wide appeal as "the god for Everyman".[169][170] Tilak was the first to install large public images of Ganesha in pavillions, and he established the practice of submerging all the public images on the tenth day.[171]

  

[edit] Rise to prominence

 

[edit] First appearance

Ganesha appears in his classic form as a clearly-recognizable deity with well-defined iconographic attributes from the early fourth to fifth centuries.[172] Shanti Lal Nagar says that the earliest known cult image of Ganesha is in the niche of the Shiva temple at Bhumra, which has been dated to the Gupta period.[173]. By about the tenth century his independent cult had come into existence.[174] Narain sums up controversy between devotees and academics regarding the development of Ganesha as follows:

 

[W]hat is inscrutable is the somewhat dramatic appearance of Gaņeśa on the historical scene. His antecedents are not clear. His wide acceptance and popularity, which transcend sectarian and territorial limits, are indeed amazing. On the one hand there is the pious belief of the orthodox devotees in Gaņeśa's Vedic origins and in the Purāṇic explanations contained in the confusing, but nonetheless interesting, mythology. On the other hand there are doubts about the existence of the idea and the icon of this deity" before the fourth to fifth century A.D. ... [I]n my opinion, indeed there is no convincing evidence or the existence of this divinity prior to the fifth century.[175]

  

[edit] Possible influences

Courtright reviews various speculative theories about the early history of Ganesha, including supposed tribal traditions and animal cults, and dismisses all of them in this way:

 

In this search for a historical origin for Gaņeśa, some have suggested precise locations outside the Brāhmaṇic tradition.... These historical locations are intriguing to be sure, but the fact remains that they are all speculations, variations on the Dravidian hypothesis, which argues that anything not attested to in the Vedic and Indo-European sources must have come into Brāhmaṇic religion from the Dravidian or aboriginal populations of India as part of the process that produced Hinduism out of the interactions of the Aryan and non-Aryan populations. There is no independent evidence for an elephant cult or a totem; nor is there any archaeological data pointing to a tradition prior to what we can already see in place in the Purāṇic literature and the iconography of Gaņeśsa.[176]

 

Thapan's book on the development of Ganesha devotes a chapter to speculations about the role elephants had in early India, but concludes that:

 

Although by the second century AD the elephant-headed yakṣa form exists it cannot be presumed to represent Gaṇapati-Vināyaka. There is no evidence of a deity by this name having an elephant or elephant-headed form at this early stage. Gaṇapati-Vināyaka had yet to make his debut.[177]

 

One theory of the origin of Ganesha is that he gradually came to prominence in connection with the four Vināyakas.[178][179] In Hindu mythology the Vināyakas were a group of four troublesome demons who created obstacles and difficulties,[180] but who were easily propitiated.[181] The name Vināyaka is a common name for Ganesha both in the Purāṇas and in Buddhist Tantras.[182] Krishan is one of the academics who accepts this view, stating flatly of Ganesha that "He is a non-vedic god. His origin is to be traced to the four Vināyakas, evil spirits, of the Mānavagŗhyasūtra (7th-4th century B.C.) who cause various types of evil and suffering."[183]

  

[edit] Vedic and epic literature

 

5th C Ganesh by Shahi King Khingala, found at Gardez, Afghanistan now at Dargah Pir Rattan NathGanesha as we know him today does not appear in the Vedas. The title "Leader of the group" (Sanskrit: gaṇapati) occurs twice in the Rig Veda but in neither case does it refer to the modern Ganesha. The term appears in RV 2.23.1 as a title for Brahmanaspati, the teacher of the gods. H. H. Wilson translates the Sanskrit verse "gaṇānāṃ tvā gaṇapatiṃ havāmahe kaviṃ kavīnāmupamaśravastamam" (RV 2.23.1 [2222]) as "We invoke the Brahmaṇaspati, chief leader of the (heavenly) bands; a sage of sages".[184] While there is no doubt that this verse refers to Brahmanaspati, the verse was later adopted for worship of Ganesha even to this day.[185][186] In rejecting any claim that this passage is evidence of Ganesha in the Rig Veda, Ludo Rocher says that it "clearly refers to Bṛhaspati - who is the deity of the hymn - and Bṛhaspati only."[187] The second passage (RV 10.112.9) equally clearly refers to Indra.[188] Wilson translates the Sanskrit verse "ni ṣu sīda gaṇapate gaṇeṣu tvāmāhurvipratamaṃ kavīnām" as "Lord of the companies (of the Maruts), sit down among the companies (of the worshippers), they call you the most sage of sages".[189]

 

Ganesha does not appear in epic literature. There is a late interpolation to the epic poem Mahabharata, saying that the sage Vyāsa asked Ganesha to serve as his scribe to transcribe the poem as he dictated it to him. Ganesha agreed, but only on the condition that Vyasa recite the poem uninterrupted, without pausing. The sage agreed to this, but found that to get any rest he needed to recite very complex passages in order to get Ganesha to ask for clarifications. This is the single passage in which Ganesha appears in that epic. The story is not accepted as part of the original text by the editors of the critical edition of the Mahabharata,[190] where the twenty-line story is relegated to a footnote to an appendix.[191] Ganesha's association with mental agility and learning is one reason he is shown as scribe for Vyāsa's dictation of the Mahabharata in this interpolation to the text.[192] Richard L. Brown dates the story as 8th century, and Winternitz concludes that it was known as early as c. 900 but he maintains that it had not yet been added to the Mahabharata some 150 years later. Moriz Winternitz also notes that a distinctive feature of Southern manuscripts of the Mahabharata is their omission of this Ganesha legend.[193]

  

[edit] Puranic period

Stories about Ganesha often occur in the Puranic corpus. Brown notes while the Puranas "defy precise chronological ordering", the more detailed narratives of Ganesha's life are in the late texts, circa 600- 1300.[194] Yuvraj Krishan says that the Puranic myths about the birth of Ganesha and how he came to acquire an elephant's head are in the later Puranas composed from about 600 onwards, and that references to Ganesha in the earlier Puranas such as the Vayu and Brahmanda Puranas, are later interpolations made during the 7th to 10th centuries.[195]

 

In his survey of Ganesha's rise to prominence in Sanskrit literature Ludo Rocher notes that:

 

Above all, one cannot help being struck by the fact that the numerous stories surrounding Gaṇeśa concentrate on an unexpectedly limited number of incidents. These incidents are mainly three: his birth and parenthood, his elephant head, and his single tusk. Other incidents are touched on in the texts, but to a far lesser extent.[196]

 

Ganesha's rise to prominence was codified in the 9th century when he was formally included as one of the five primary deities of Smartism. The ninth-century philosopher Śaṅkarācārya popularized the "worship of the five forms" (pañcāyatana pūjā) system among orthodox Brahmins of the Smārta tradition.[197][198] This worship practice invokes the five deities Ganesha, Vishnu, Shiva, Devī, and Sūrya.[199][200] Śaṅkarācārya instituted the tradition primarily to unite the principal deities of these five major sects on an equal status. This formalized the role of Ganesha as a complementary deity. The monistic philosophy preached by Śaṅkarācārya made it possible to choose one of these as a preferred principal deity and at the same time worship the other four deities as different forms of the same all-pervading Brahman.

  

[edit] Ganesha Scriptures

 

Statue of Ganesha with a flowerFor more detail see: Ganesha Purana and Mudgala Purana

Once Ganesha was accepted as one of the five principal deities of Brahmanism, some brāhmaṇas chose to worship Ganesha as their principal deity. They developed the Ganapatya tradition as seen in the Ganesha Purana and the Mudgala Purana.[201]

 

The date of composition for the Ganesha Purana and the Mudgala Purana, and their dating relative to one another, has sparked academic debate. Both works developed over periods of time and contain age-layered strata. Anita Thapan reviews different views on dating and provides her own judgement. She states that it appears likely that the core of the Ganesha Purana came into existence around the 12th and 13th centuries but was subject to interpolations during the succeeding ages.[202] Lawrence W. Preston considers that the period 1100-1400 is the most reasonable date for the Ganesha Purana because that period agrees with the apparent age of the sacred sites mentioned by it.[203]

 

R. C. Hazra suggested that the Mudgala Purana is older than the Ganesha Purana which he dates between 1100 and 1400 A.D.[204] However Phillis Granoff finds problems with this relative dating and concludes that the Mudgala Purana was the last of the philosophical texts concerned with Ganesha because, among other internal evidence, the Mudgala Purana specifically mentions the Ganesha Purana as one of the four Puranas that deal at length with Ganesha (these are the Brahma, the Brahmanda, the Ganesha, and the Mudgala puranas).[205] The Mudgala Purana, like many other Puranas, contains multiple age strata. While the kernel of the text must be old it continued to receive interpolations until the 17th and 18th centuries as the worship of Ganapati became more important in certain regions.[206] Another highly regarded scripture, the Ganapati Atharvashirsa, was probably composed during the sixteenth or seventeenth centuries A.D.[207]

  

[edit] Beyond India and Hinduism

For more on this topic, see Ganesha outside Hinduism.

 

Tibetan depiction of Dancing Ganesha[208] This form is also known as Maharakta ("The Great Red One")[209]India had an impact on the regions of West and Southeast Asia as a result of commercial and cultural contacts. Ganesha is one of many Hindu deities who reached foreign lands as a result.[210] The worship of Ganesha by Hindus outside of India shows regional variation.

 

Ganesha was particularly worshipped by traders and merchants, who went out of India for commercial ventures.[211] The period from approximately the tenth century onwards was marked by the development of new networks of exchange, the formation of trade guilds, and a resurgence of money circulation. It was during this time that Ganesha became the principal deity associated with traders.[212] The earliest inscription where Ganesha is invoked before any other deity is by the merchant community.[213]

 

Hindus spread out to the Malay Archipelago and took their culture with them, including Ganesha.[214] Statues of Ganesa are found throughout the Malay Archipelago in great numbers, often beside Shiva sanctuaries. The forms of Ganesha found in Hindu art of Java, Bali, and Borneo show specific regional influences.[215] The gradual emigration of Hindus to Indochina established Ganesha in modified forms in Burma, Cambodia, and Thailand. In Indochina, Hinduism and Buddhism were practiced side-by-side and mutual influences can be seen in the iconography of Ganesha in the region.[216] In Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam, Ganesha was mainly thought of as a remover of obstacles.[217] Even today, in Buddhist Thailand Ganesha is regarded as remover of obstacles and thus god of success.[218]

 

Before the arrival of Islam, Afganistan had close cultural ties with India, and the adoration of both Hindu and Buddhist deities was practiced. A few examples of sculptures from the period 5th-7th century have survived, suggesting that the worship of Ganesha was in vogue in the region at that time.[219][220]

 

Ganesha appears in Buddhism, not only in the form of the Buddhist god Vināyaka, but also portrayed as a Hindu demon form with the same name (Vināyaka).[221] His image appears in Buddhist sculptures during the late Gupta period.[222] As the Buddhist god Vināyaka, he is often shown dancing, a form called Nṛtta Ganapati that was popular in North India, later adopted in Nepal and then in Tibet.[223] In Nepal, the Hindu form of Ganesha known as Heramba is very popular, where he appears with five heads and rides on a lion.[224] Tibetan representations of Ganesha show ambivalent views of him.[225] In one Tibetan form, he is shown being trodden under foot by Mahākala, a popular Tibetan deity.[226][227] Other depictions show him as the Destroyer of Obstacles, sometimes dancing.[228] Ganesha appears in both China and Japan in forms that show distinct regional character. In North China, the earliest known stone statue of Ganesha carries an inscription dated 531 CE.[229] In Japan the Ganesha cult was first mentioned in 806 CE.[230]

 

The canonical literature of Jainism does not mention the cult of Ganesha.[231] However Ganesha is worshipped by most Jains, for whom he appears to have taken over certain functions of Kubera.[232] Jain connections with the trading community support the idea that Jainism took up the worship of Ganesha as a result of commercial connections.[233] The earliest known Jain Ganesha statue dates to about the 9th century.[234] A 15th century Jain text provides procedures for the installation of Ganapati images.[235] Images of Ganesha appear in the Jain temples of Rajasthan and Gujarat.[236]

  

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganesha

  

Collective: of, relating to, or denoting a group of individuals considered as a whole.

 

The Collective is a group of friends/business partners who met while in school. They are makeup artists, hairstylists, photographers and fashion stylists that formed a group.

 

They sometimes work together (or in pairs or small groupings) on photoshoots, music videos and other projects.

 

The Collective is:

 

From left to right:

 

Front seated- Intern Tory Thomas

 

Back rear- Photographers: Jon Alexander

Evan Knight

 

Stylists: Danny Silvera

Foreground- Rowan Rogers

Willow (just Willow)

 

Makeup Artists: Doran Cain

Dallas Alexander (Jon's sister)

 

Hairstylists: Phoenix Jones (no relation to Nebraska or Noxema)

Nina Chen (professionally goes by Nina Black)

With a blast of steam, the GWR loco leaves Irwell Vale for Rawtenstall. If you have to have a vehicle in the photo, well what about a product from the Land Rover factory!

Not that there is an age similarity, but you can always relate to the product going back many years

Visiting Dyce Military Cemetery Aberdeen Scotland today Sunday 13th Of January 2019, I found a number of hand painted stones placed on the Cross Of Sacrifice, it is the first time I have viewed any personal items reflecting thoughts of remembrance other than flowers or wreaths at a commonwealth grave cemetery.

 

Hand painted and personally placed on the Cross Of Sacrifice by unknowns who appreciate those who gave the ultimate sacrifice moved me , hence I captured a number of photo’s to archive the scene .

 

There are ten German graves in Dyce Cemetery. It is assumed that all of them relate to Luftwaffe personnel.

 

They are the crews of three aircraft which failed to make it back after missions over Aberdeen.

 

Aberdeen was the most frequently bombed city in Scotland. It was attacked 34 times and 178 people were killed.

 

The heaviest attack was on 21st April 1943. In a pre-planned air raid 25 Dornier 217s of the Kampf-Geschwader Group 2 swept into Aberdeen from the north of the city as dusk fell causing damage in the Woodside, Hilton, Cattofield, Kittybrewster and George Street areas.

 

The toll was heavy : 98 people were killed and a similar number seriously injured.

 

Dyce airport was a Royal Air Force station during the 1939-1945 War, and an extension on the western side of the old churchyard was chosen by the authorities for the burial of casualties from the air station.

 

Only airmen are buried in this reserved plot.

 

There is 1 Commonwealth burial of the 1914-18 war in the churchyard.

 

There are a further 45 of the 1939-45 war, 1 being an unidentified airman of the R.A.F. There are 11 Foreign National war burials and 4 non-war Service burials here.

 

The Cross of Sacrifice is a Commonwealth war memorial designed in 1918 by Sir Reginald Blomfield for the Imperial War Graves Commission (now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission). It is present in Commonwealth war cemeteries containing 40 or more graves. Its shape is an elongated Latin cross with proportions more typical of the Celtic cross, with the shaft and crossarm octagonal in section. It ranges in height from 18 to 24 feet (5.5 to 7.3 m).

 

A bronze longsword, blade down, is affixed to the front of the cross (and sometimes to the back as well). It is usually mounted on an octagonal base. It may be freestanding or incorporated into other cemetery features.

 

The Cross of Sacrifice is widely praised, widely imitated, and the archetypal British war memorial. It is the most imitated of Commonwealth war memorials, and duplicates and imitations have been used around the world.

  

The Imperial War Graves Commission

 

The First World War introduced killing on such a mass scale that few nations were prepared to cope with it. Millions of bodies were never recovered, or were recovered long after any identification could be made. Hundreds of thousands of bodies were buried on the battlefield where they lay. It was often impossible to dig trenches without unearthing remains, and artillery barrages often uncovered bodies and flung the disintegrating corpses into the air.

 

Many bodies were buried in French municipal cemeteries, but these rapidly filled to capacity. Due to the costs and sheer number of remains involved, Australia, Canada, India, Newfoundland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom barred repatriation of remains.

 

Fabian Ware, a director of the Rio Tinto mining company, toured some battlefields in as part of a British Red Cross mission in the fall of 1914.

 

Ware was greatly disturbed by status of British war graves, many of which were marked by deteriorating wooden crosses, haphazardly placed and with names and other identifying information written nearly illegibly in pencil. Ware petititoned the British government to establish an official agency to oversee the locating, recording, and marking of British war dead, and to acquire land for cemeteries. The Imperial War Office agreed, and created the Graves Registration Commission in March 1915. In May, the Graves Registration Commission ceased to operate an ambulance service for the British Red Cross, and in September was made an official arm of the military after being attached to the Royal Army Service Corps.

 

During its short existence, the Graves Registration Commission consolidated many British war dead cemeteries. Ware negotiated a treaty with the French government whereby the French would purchase space for British war cemeteries, and the British government assumed the cost of platting, creating, and maintaining the sites. Over the next few months, the Graves Registration Commission closed British war dead cemeteries with fewer than 50 bodies, disinterred the bodies, and reinterred them at the new burying grounds. The Graves Registration Commission became the Directorate of Graves Registration and Enquiries in February 1916.

 

As the war continued, there was a growing awareness in the British Army that a more permanent body needed be organized to care for British war graves after the war. In January 1916, the prime minister H. H. Asquith appointed a National Committee for the Care of Soldiers' Graves to take over this task. Edward, Prince of Wales agreed to serve as the committee's president. The committee's membership reflected all members of the British Commonwealth (with a special representative from India).

 

Over the next year, members of the National Committee for the Care of Soldiers' Graves began to feel that their organization was inadequate to the task, and that a more formal organization, with a broader mandate, should be created. The idea was broached at the first Imperial War Conference in March 1917, and on 21 May 1917 the Imperial War Graves Commission (IWGC) was chartered . Lord Derby was named its chair, and the Prince of Wales its president.

 

The same month he was appointed to the senior architects' committee, Blomfield accompanied Lutyens and Baker on a tour of French and Belgian battlefields.

 

Designing the Cross of Sacrifice

 

Kenyon, Baker, and Blomfield all submitted cross designs to the senior architects' committee. Kenyon submitted two draft designs, one for a Celtic cross and one for a medieval Christian cross (both typically found in old English cemeteries). Baker, who had advocated the cemetery theme of "crusade" since July 1917 and (according to Goebel, was "obsessed" with the idea), submitted the design of a stone Christian cross with a bronze longsword (called a Crusader's sword by Baker) on the front. His design, which he called the "Ypres cross", also included a bronze image of a naval sailing ship, emblematic of the Royal Navy's role in winning both the Crusades and the First World War.

 

Blomfield, on the other hand, took a different approach to the cross. He rejected Kenyon's design, arguing that "runic monuments or gothic crosses had nothing to do with the grim terrors of the trenches." Blomfield wanted a design that reflected the war, which had stripped away any notions about glory in combat and nobility in death on the battlefield. "What I wanted to do in designing this Cross was to make it as abstract and impersonal as I could, to free it from any association of any particular style, and, above all, to keep clear of any sentimentalism of the Gothic. This was a man's war far too terrible for any fripperies, and I hoped to get within range of the infinite in this symbol..." His design featured an elongated cross of abstract design, on the front of which was a bronze longsword, blade pointed downward. It was intended to be an overtly Christian symbol, in contrast to Lutyen's Stone of Remembrance (which was purposefully stripped of any such associations). Blomfield drew the inspiration for the sword from a sword which hung in his home in Rye.

 

The senior architects' committee quickly endorsed the Blomfield design. The committee considered adding text to the base or steps of the cross, but rejected this idea.

In order to ensure that the architects' ideas for Commonwealth cemeteries worked well in the field, the IWGC decided to fund the construction of three experimental cemeteries Le Tréport, Forceville, and Louvencourt. The goal was to determine how expensive the cemeteries were likely to be.

 

The model cemeteries were designed by Baker, Lutyens, and Blomfield, and began construction in May 1918. Due to problems with construction, none were complete until early 1920, six months later than planned. Each model cemetery had a chapel and shelter, but no Stone of Remembrance or Cross of Sacrifice. Nevertheless, even without these major additions, the cemeteries were too expensive.

 

The model cemeteries experiment changed the way the Stone of Remembrance was placed in cemeteries, and almost changed the design of the Cross of Sacrifice itself. To reduce costs, Blomfield offered to design a wide variation of Crosses, many of which were less costly than the original design. But the committee of senior architects rejected his offer. What became apparent with the experimental cemeteries is that a full-size Cross or Stone was appropriate only for the largest cemeteries. Mid-size and smaller cemeteries needed smaller memorials. Blomfield quickly designed two smaller-sized Crosses to accommodate this need. But Lutyens refused to allow anything but a full-sized War Stone (12 feet (3.7 m) in length and 5 feet (1.5 m) in height) to be used.

 

Subsequently, and partly as a cost-saving measure, no Stone of Remembrance was erected in a cemetery with fewer than 400 graves. Budgetary issues also led the committee to agree that shelters should be forgone in any cemetery with fewer than 200 graves.

 

The model cemeteries experiment also helped the architects decide where to place the Cross of Sacrifice. As early as 1917, Lutyens and Kenyon had agreed that the War Stone should be in the east, but facing west. (All graves were supposed to face east, facing the enemy, although many of the earliest cemeteries had graves facing in other [sometimes in many different] directions.)

 

The initial idea was to have the Cross of Sacrifice be in opposition to the Stone. In practice, however, the placement of the Cross of Sacrifice varied widely.

 

The model cemeteries experiment also had one other effect, and that was to make Blomfield's design for the cross the only one ever used by the IWGC. The original intent of the senior architects had been to allow each junior architect to design his own cross for his own cemetery. But Blomfield's design proved so wildly popular that the decision was made to implement it as a standard feature in all cemeteries.

 

The formal adoption of Blomfield's Cross of Sacrifice, and the concepts regarding its placement, position, and use, were outlined by Kenyon in a report, A Memorandum on the Cross as Central Monument, submitted in January 1919 as an addendum to his November 1918 main report.

 

About the Cross of Sacrifice

 

Cross of Sacrifice at Eindhoven, Netherlands.

According to Fabian Ware, the name "Cross of Sacrifice" arose spontaneously from an unknown source, and attached itself to the cross.

 

The Cross of Sacrifice is carved from white stone.[61][58] This is usually Portland stone,[62] but it is sometimes granite[63] or any type of white limestone commonly found in France or Belgium. In Italy, Chiampo Perla limestone was used.[65] The proportions of the cross, with short arms close to the top of the shaft are similar to some Celtic crosses, the crossarm being one-third the length of the shaft (as measured from the point where the shaft emerges from the base).

 

The cross consists of three pieces: The shaft, from base to crossarm; the crossarm; and the upper shaft, above the crossarm. The crossarm is fastened to the lower and upper shaft by two bronze dowels. A joggle (a portion of the shaft which extends into the base, acting as a joint) about 6 inches (15 cm) long extends into the base, where it is secured by another bronze dowel. The shaft and crossarm are both octagonal in shape, and the shaft tapers slightly as it rises to give the cross entasis.

 

On the large size version, there are three plain mouldings on the shaft near the base, often reduced to one in smaller sizes, and the three extremities of the cross finish at a plain moulding projecting sideways from the main element. The crossarms are sometimes irregular octagons in section, with four wide faces at front, back, top and bottom, and four shorter faces in between them.

A stylized bronze longsword, point down, is fastened to the front of the cross.[66] The cross is designed so that a second bronze sword may be fastened to the rear as well. The sword is positioned so that the crossguard on the sword matches where the cross' shaft and crossarm meet.

 

The Cross of Sacrifice originally came in four heights: 14 feet (4.3 m), 18 feet (5.5 m), 20 feet (6.1 m), and 24 feet (7.3 m).[43] Sizes up to 30 feet (9.1 m) are now permitted,[67] although sometimes even larger versions are allowed. As of 2012, the largest Cross of Sacrifice in the world was the 40-foot (12 m) high marker at the Halifax Memorial in Halifax.

 

The Halifax Memorial's Cross of Sacrifice

 

The shaft is fastened to an octagonal base. The size of the base varies, according to the height of the shaft, but the 24-foot (7.3 m) high cross has a base 15 feet 6 inches (4.72 m) in diameter.[69] This largest base weighs 2 short tons (1.8 t).[58] The base usually sits on three octagonal steps.[58] This can vary, however, depending on the height of the cross, its placement in the cemetery, and whether it is part of some other cemetery element.

 

The position of the Cross of Sacrifice in Commonwealth war cemeteries varies depending on a wide range of factors. Many cemeteries were laid out haphazardly during the war. The role of the junior designing architect was to determine the position of the Cross (and Stone of Remembrance) in relationship to the graves.[57] Most cemeteries had two axes—a main axis and an entrance axis, or a main/entrance axis and a lateral axis. An overriding guiding principle was that the War Stone should be the focus of the cemetery.

 

The Cross of Sacrifice, however, usually functioned as the primary orienting feature of the cemetery for visitors, due to its height. In hilly areas, the architect had to ensure that the cross was visible from the road or path. (This was far less important in flat areas, obviously.) When a road passed directly by the cemetery, the cross usually was placed near the road and the entrance to the cemetery associated with the cross. These design considerations meant that the Cross of Sacrifice could be placed in a wide variety of places. Sometimes it was situated next to the War Stone, and sometimes in opposition to it. In some cases, the Cross of Sacrifice was placed in a distant corner of the cemetery, so that its relationship to the Stone of Remembrance was not clear.

 

It was not necessary for the Cross of Sacrifice to stand alone, either. In some cases, it was incorporated into a wall or benches.

 

The placement of the Cross of Sacrifice affected other elements of the cemetery. The architect's choice of buildings to erect—double shelters, galleries, gateways, pergolas, sheltered alcoves, or single shelters—depended on the location of the War Stone, the Cross of Sacrifice, and the size of the cemetery.

 

The cross at Tyne Cot Cemetery near Ypres, Belgium, was incorporated into a pillbox.

 

A Cross of Sacrifice was erected in almost every Commonwealth war cemetery. Subsequent Commonwealth War Graves Commission policy has erected the cross Commonwealth war cemeteries with 40 or more graves.

 

There were only a handful of exceptions. No cross was erected in cemeteries which held a majority of Chinese or Indian graves.

 

In Turkey, no cross was erected in order to accommodate local Muslim feelings. Instead, a simple Latin cross was carved into a stone slab, which was placed at the rear of the cemetery. In Macedonia, a cairn was used in place of a cross to reflect the local custom.

 

In the several Commonwealth cemeteries in the mountains of Italy, Blomfield's design was replaced with a Latin cross made of rough square blocks of red or white stone.

 

It is unclear how much it cost to manufacture a Cross of Sacrifice. Generally speaking, however, the cost of building a cemetery was borne by each Commonwealth nation in proportion to number of their war dead in that cemetery.

 

While generally considered a beautiful design, the Cross of Sacrifice is not a robust one. The artwork is susceptible to toppling in high wind, as the shaft is held upright only by a 6-inch (15 cm) long piece of stone and a single bronze dowel. Should the stone joggle or dowel break, the shaft topples.

 

This problem quickly became apparent in Europe, where a large number of the crosses fell in high winds in the 1920s and 1930s. At one point, the Imperial War Graves Commission considered suing Blomfield for under-designing the artwork, but no lawsuit was ever filed.

 

Vandalism has also been a problem. Crosses of Sacrifice have been smashed or the bronze swords stolen, with the vandalism being particularly bad in the 1970s.

 

The Cross of Sacrifice is considered one of the great pieces of war-related art. Its enduring popularity, historian Allen Frantzen says, is because it is both simple and expressive, its abstraction reflecting the modernity people valued after the war.

 

Fabian Ware argued that its greatness was because its symbolism is so purposefully vague: To some, it is a Christian cross; to others, the stone is irrelevant and the sword itself is the cross; and to others, the artwork symbolizes those who sacrificed their lives to the sword.

 

The theme of sacrifice is commonly seen in the piece. Jeroen Geurst points out that Lutyens' War Stone unsettlingly brings to mind images of soldiers sacrificed on the altar of war, while Blomfield's cross speaks about self-sacrifice and the saving grace of Jesus Christ's sacrifice.

 

The sword has drawn praise as well. Frantzen notes that the sword can be both an offensive and defensive weapon, which mitigates against an interpretation of the Cross of Sacrifice as a glorification of war.

 

The sword also incorporates elements of chivalry, which was an important value to officers and men during the war.

 

Historian Mark Sheftall agrees that the sword evokes chivalric themes, and argues that by combining the religious and the chivalric with the classical Blomfield created "a single powerful image".But the military element has also been criticized. Geurst argues that one may interpret the sword as implying that the Great War was a religious crusade—which it most certainly was not.

 

The impact of the Cross of Sacrifice on war memorialization is difficult to underestimate. The IWGC considered the artwork a "mark of the symbolism of the present crusade". Cemetery historian Ken Worpole argues that the Cross of Sacrifice "became one of the most resonant and distinctive artefacts in British and Commonwealth war cemeteries, following the end of World War One."

 

First World War historian Bruce Scates observes that its symbolism was effective throughout the Commonwealth, despite widely disparate cultural and religious norms.

 

Historians agree it is the most widely imitated of Commonwealth war memorials,and Sheftall concludes that it has become the archetypal example of Great War commemoration in Britain.

Here is another scan and retouch that relates a load of history... and a load of grief. It's age is in question. Maybe someone knows of this cutout photo prop at Rockaway Beach at New York City. This is a crowd of people all loaded into two who choose to advertise it. A bay tug could be at risk of capsizing were this a real boat. Perhaps the date of the snap could be determined by investigating when a food shortage took NYC by storm.

 

These two are the crowd that created the mess of the Hodum family children and spreading families. You need to pack a lot of groceries away to generate enough energy to pull off a feat like that with bodies like these. Does anyone have footage of elephants mating?

 

As usual, dust on negatives and contact printing left untold white specks and black holes. Grubby fingers and tears left plenty of defects across the image. In close, it looked like a shotgun blast. I attacked the worst of the flecks. As always, it provides plenty of practice whether needed or not. I already have far too much practice. I used the same two techniques, the Stamp and Brush to work on the image. Unfortunately, this scanner usually features all the defects on old snaps like this. I would have been lucky if these were all the problems I encountered. Part of the original was ripped away when someone tore it from an album with black pages where it was glued down, an elegant presentation certainly. Perhaps not so good for longevity and finding any inscription that might be on the reverse. I searched for the scrap but never found it.

 

I suppose that it will always be possible that this family will exchange the digital retouching and spread them far enough that my labor won't be entirely wasted. I gang output to high resolution PDFs that can be printed at home or taken to Fed-X/Kinkos for color printing. I output a couple dozen ganged sheets. Their output never seems to waver from the quality of the PDF. Trimming them with scissors, especially the deckle edges, will be a challenge. That's not my job.

 

I received a load of scanning and retouching recently relegated to me. So far, I have several solid days packed into the project and the collection has not shrunk that much. So much for me keeping up with Flickr. I wonder why the family thinks that I owe them thousands in difficult retouching labor?

 

Recent postings relating to the latest member of our 'Fantasy Fleet', AEL 170B and in-depth information received from 'Landersreach' on the dispersal of this batch of Bournemouth Atlanteans sent me off on an electronic rummage. I'd forgotten that I'd taken a picture of another of them beyond those which came to Stonier's and Berresfords and so here it is. The last of the batch made its way to South Wales and the predominantly Leyland based fleet, Creamline of Tonmawr. At some time in it's life, 179 appears to have gained a one piece windscreen ... unless it was that the remainder had gained two piece whilst at Bournemouth for practical reasons. The bus is seen here parked next to a poorly Leopard in the yard of Creamline's wonderfully scenic valley side garage.

Kinetic: Relating to, caused by, or producing motion.

 

These are called “Kinetic” photographs because there is motion, energy, and movement involved, specifically my and the camera’s movements.

 

I choose a light source and/or subject, set my camera for a long exposure (typically around 4 seconds), focus on my subject and push the shutter button. When the shutter opens I move the camera around with my hands...large, sweeping, dramatic movements. And then I will literally throw the camera several feet up into the air, most times imparting a spinning or whirling motion to it as I hurl it upward. I may throw the camera several times and also utilize hand-held motion several times in one photo. None of these are Photoshopped, layered, or a composite photo...what you see occurs in one shot, one take.

 

Aren’t I afraid that I will drop and break my camera? For regular followers of my photostream and this series you will know that I have already done so. This little camera has been dropped many times, and broken once when dropped on concrete outside. It still functions...not so well for regular photographs, but superbly for more kinetic work.

 

To read more about Kinetic Photography click the Wikipedia link below:

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_photography

 

And to see more of my Kinetic Photographs please visit my set, “Flux Velocity:”

 

www.flickr.com/photos/motorpsiclist/sets/72157622224677487/

 

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Albeit supremely risky this is one of my favorite ways to produce abstract photographs.

 

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My photographs and videos and any derivative works are my private property and are copyright © by me, John Russell (aka “Zoom Lens”) and ALL my rights, including my exclusive rights, are reserved. ANY use without my permission in writing is forbidden by law.

 

Bob Curry, in almost the full Silva’s uniform (no badge), posing with a “new” ambulance, formerly used by Allied Ambulance in Oakland.

 

The following is an excerpt of a blog written by Tim Dees who relates his experiences working for Silva's in the mid 1970's.

 

Link: timdees.com/blog/?p=375

 

The ambulances were pink, because that was the owner’s wife’s favorite color. Pink bed linen, and when I got there, they were just moving away from pink shirts, as they were too difficult to find. Bob Silva never bought a new ambulance. They were all used Cadillacs, as he believed a used Cadillac was much classier than a new van-type that actually ran. I was taking a woman in labor to a hospital in San Francisco when the tranny gave up the ghost in Hunter’s Point. I’d told Bob the day before that it was on its last legs, and he advised that I should shut up and drive what I was given to drive. We were dead in the water, and just barely within radio range to call for another rig to take our patient.

 

The county came out with some new regs for gear that had to be on the rig, and one requirement was an obstetrics kit. Pre-packaged OB kits from Dyna-Med were $7.50 each. Silva bought one. He put it on a rig, sent it to be inspected, then brought that one back and put the same kit on the next rig to be inspected. When it was finally left in the rig he usually drove, he wrapped it in strapping tape to discourage anyone from actually using it. It wasn’t like we didn’t need OB kits. I delivered three babies while I worked there.

 

The electronic sirens we’re so used to now were just coming into widespread use in the 1970s. Most of our ambulances were equipped with mechanical sirens that wound up slowly when activated. They had brakes on them, and if you forgot to brake the siren before you left the rig, it would take a minute or more to wind down, growling the whole time. The big daddy of these mechanical sirens was the Federal Q2. Some of these are still in use on fire engines. The Q2 is a massive thing, and drew so much power that the engine would knock when you leaned on the button too long—the spark plugs didn’t get enough voltage. Few man-made things are as loud as a Q2. One day, while en route back to the station with a new attendant, I stopped at a Safeway for some groceries. I left the attendant in the rig, telling him to tap the siren if we got a call. When the call came in, he didn’t tap on the horn ring that activated the siren—he held it down. The ambulance was parked facing the store and its large plate glass windows. I heard the siren, then heard the window start to reverberate in its frame as it resonated with the blast of sonic waves—“whap-whap-whap-whapwhapWhapWhapWHAPWHAPWHAP.” I made it back to the rig, screaming ineffectively, before the window shattered.

 

Between the mechanical siren, separate heater for the rear compartment, more blinking lights than a Vegas casino, etc., the ambulances needed a lot of electrical power. A single battery would be dead before you got to the hospital, so most ambulances had two car batteries, cross-connected via a big rotary Cole-Hersee switch. The switch, which looked a little like the access cover to your house’s sewer cleanout pipe, had four positions: Battery One, Battery Two, Both, and Off. “Both” was the usual setting, but when the rig was parked, it was common to switch it to “Off,” so the batteries wouldn’t be drained if you had forgotten to turn something off. This effectively disconnected the batteries from the rest of the rig. If you wanted to have some fun with another crew, you could turn everything in their rig on, but leave the Cole-Hersee switch off. When they turned it back on, hilarity would ensue.

 

The gear we had in these ambulances was very basic, and most of us purchased and brought our own equipment to work, rather than provide inferior care for our patients. I bought my own stethoscope and sphygmomanometer (blood pressure cuff), chemical cold packs, wire ladder splints, ammonia “wake up gizmo” ampules, etc. Consumable supplies, such as self-adhering Kerlix bandages and waterproof tape, were stolen from the hospitals. The bandages we had on board, furnished by the company, were made of crumbling linen material from the Korean War era. Oropharyngeal airways were supposed to be either used once and discarded, or autoclaved between patients, but we had neither replacement airways or an autoclave, so we wiped them clean with alcohol and hoped for the best.

 

Our suction apparatus was powered through the engine’s vacuum manifold. Suction power went to zero when the engine was accelerating. If you were trying to clear gunk from a patient’s airway while your driver was flooring it, you’d tell him to coast until you had made some progress.

 

We weren’t allowed to say someone was dead, even if the flesh was falling from their bones. Law enforcement officers could make that determination, but doing so meant they would have to remain at the scene until the coroner arrived, which could take hours. This being the case, many officers chose to see some glimmer of life in corpses long past resurrection. We responded to an “11-80” (traffic accident with serious injuries) attended by a member of the California Highway Patrol to find a pickup truck that had rolled over with an unfortunate passenger in the back. The passenger had not quite been decapitated, as his head was hanging by a few strips of flesh. This was one of the more obvious dead people I had encountered, but the Chippie ordered us to run him in. Getting the body onto the gurney had the same effect achieved in kosher slaughterhouses, where the neck veins are severed and the blood is allowed to drain from the carcass. By the time we got to the hospital, the floor of the rear compartment was literally awash in blood, with it sloshing over my boots. I called the office and told them we would be out of service for a while.

 

This pre-dated the AIDS scare, and even though hepatitis and other bloodborne pathogens were just as nasty then as now (and there was no vaccine), we had no latex gloves to wear. Back then, gloves were worn by medical people to protect the patient from infection. There wasn’t a lot of thought given to protecting the caregivers. I remember cleaning up after an especially gruesome call and thinking that I wasn’t just cleaning something, but rather someone, out from under my fingernails.

 

One case where we didn’t have to transport was at the home of an older gentleman. I never knew the circumstances that prompted the call, but we arrived a few minutes after the fire department and before the cops. As we walked up to the house, the firemen were walking out, chuckling to one another. “He’s dead!” they said with some amusement. We entered the bedroom to find an older man lying supine on top of his bed, naked. Rigor had set in, so he had been gone for some time. What the firefighters found so funny was that the man had expired while engaged in an act of self-pleasure, and still had the weapon in hand. My partner and I looked at each other and registered much the same expression the firemen had. As we walked out, the cops were just arriving. “He’s dead!” we told them. I suppose there are worse ways to go, but that’s not how I want to be found.

 

I ran a lot of calls at Silva’s. The shifts were 120 hours long–yes, five days straight. You got paid straight time ($2.00/hour in 1974) for the first eight hours, a guaranteed time-and-a-half for five more hours, and were unpaid for three hours of meals, whether you actually got to eat them or not. Between midnight and eight in the morning, you got overtime for the time you were actually in service on the call. If you rolled and were cancelled two minutes out–which was common–you got two minutes of overtime. I swear some of those rigs could find their own way home, because there were many nights I have no memory of having driven them there. When my days off finally arrived, I would usually sleep through at least one of them.

 

The full Silva’s uniform was a sartorial delight. Each time they would give me a new uniform article, it would fall to a mysteriously tragic end, so I wore a white shirt, navy blue knit slacks, and a nylon bomber jacket. If you wanted to show you were management material, the required outfit consisted of a white (formerly pink) shirt with royal blue trousers and Ike jacket. The trousers had white piping down each leg, as did the cuffs of the jacket. On each shoulder of the Ike jacket was a huge purple and gold patch, proclaiming the wearer to be employed by Silva’s Ambulance Service, the words spelled out in metallic script. One was also obliged to wear a royal blue CHP clip-on neck tie. Mandatory accessories to the ensemble included a gold metal nametag, white belt, and white leather shoes. Worn on the shirt or jacket was a shield-type gold badge, about the size of a soup plate. All the badges identified the wearers as “Technician,” except for Bob Silva’s. His said, “Owner.” There was a $20 deposit on the badge. Those who were really in with the in crowd had huge custom Western-style belt buckles with their first names spelled out diagonally, and the corners adorned with red crosses, stars of life, or tiny ambulances. However, the crowning glory accessory–and I only saw one of these–was a gold tie bar, wider than the tie itself, with a fine gold chain attached to either end of the bar. Dangling from the chain was a pink Cadillac ambulance. Its wearer was extremely proud of this, and wouldn’t tell anyone where he got it, lest someone steal his thunder.

 

Employee turnover was around 200% annually, and I was a prized employee because I always showed up on time and sober. I was able to work full time on school vacations and summer, and from Friday evening to early Monday morning, when I’d leave to make it to my first class at San Jose State. It wasn’t uncommon to have an employee go AWOL, and have the cops show up a day or so later, looking for them. You had to be fingerprinted to get an ambulance driver’s license, but all you needed to work as an attendant was a first aid card, which management would procure for you for a small fee.

 

Bob Curry, in almost the full Silva's uniform (no badge), posing with a "new" ambulance, formerly used by Allied Ambulance in Oakland.

Bob Curry, in almost the full Silva’s uniform (no badge), posing with a “new” ambulance, formerly used by Allied Ambulance in Oakland.

 

There was one very senior employee whose name was also Bob. Bob thought he was the manager, and would tell you he was if asked, despite advice to the contrary if one of the Silvas was listening. Bob was very possessive of “his” ambulance, which was always the newest one (given that they were all used, “new” was a relative term). One night, I had just come in to work, and a call came in. The dispatcher told me to take it, so I grabbed an attendant and got in the first rig I saw. It was Bob’s, of course. When I returned, Bob screamed my face, lest I forget that that particular rig was HIS ambulance, and I had better stay the hell out of it if I knew what was good for me. Bob had an apartment near the main station, so he didn’t have to sleep at the station when he was on duty. If you were Bob’s attendant (Bob never worked in the back unless there was some real hero stuff going on), you were allowed to drive Bob’s ambulance to his place, where you switched seats. That night, a co-conspirator and I did a little customizing to Bob’s rig. When he got in the next morning, he found the handle on the driver’s door adorned with some adhesive tape, reading “Bob’s Door Handle.” Inside, more tape indicated Bob’s Steering Wheel, Bob’s Cigarette Lighter, Bob’s Gearshift, Bob’s Turn Indicator, Bob’s Accelerator, Bob’s Radio, Bob’s Other Radio, and so on. Tucked under Bob’s Sun Visor was a card on a little string, trimmed to drop to eye level: “Hi, Bob.”

 

Silva’s didn’t have the market cornered on odd employees. A rival company employed a guy we called Captain Action. Captain Action worked for a company that had more traditional uniforms, but still included a badge. The issued badge wasn’t up to Captain Action’s high standards. He had his own badge made up. It was a thing of beauty. It was a gold seven-point star (the most common style of police badge in those parts), but much larger than most police badges. It put the Silva’s badge to shame on size alone. I remember it had a big California State Seal in the middle, and a lot of text on the banners and inner ring. There was so much lettering on the badge that I never got to finish reading it, although I saw it often. Captain Action also wore a police-style Sam Browne belt with various snaps and cases, including a cuff case, handcuffs, and a baton ring. I never saw a baton, but I’m sure he had it around somewhere.

 

Captain Action loved to talk on the radio. Each ambulance had two radios, one on the company channel, and one that broadcasted on a shared, county-wide channel, called County Control. There was no direct channel to the hospitals, so one was obliged to tell County Control what you had and where you were bringing it, so the dispatcher could give the appropriate ER the heads up. An appropriate message might be something like, “County Control, Ambulance 3335, en route Code 3 to Peninsula Medical with an unconscious head injury.” Captain Action preferred to be somewhat more detailed, and made liberal use of the phonetic alphabet. “County Control, Ambulance 3330, en route Peninsula Medical Center with a 33-year-old white male with a history of cardiac myopathy, I spell CHARLES-ADAM-ROBERT-DAVID-IDA-ADAM-CHARLES-BREAK-MARY-YELLOW-OCEAN-PAUL-ADAM-TOM-HENRY-YELLOW…”

 

After one of these lengthy naratives (keep in mind that there were ten or twelve other ambulances in the county that used the same channel), the dispatcher was oddly silent. Captain Action made another try to ensure his message made it through. “County Control, Ambulance 3330, did you copy?”

 

“Ambulance 3330, County Control, TOM-EDWARD-NORA-BREAK-FRANK-OCEAN-UNION-ROBERT.”

 

Ah, the good old days.

 

Written by Tim Dees on January 1st, 2015

Uses: Anything relating to finance and money.

 

Free Creative Commons Finance Images... I created these images in my studio and have made them all available for personal or commercial use. Hope you like them and find them useful.

 

To see more of our CC by 2.0 finance images click here... see profile for attribution.

 

Uses: Anything relating to finance.

This relates to the time I spent at Arriva. My regular journey in the mornings was a peak hour service 23 from Erskine to Glasgow. My arch enemy was Neil Stafford (although I did not know him at the time) who had the same timed competitive journey for Gibson's. Normally he would have a Dart and I would have a Dart or sometimes a Scania. Every morning was a battle of wits! The only predictable thing was that we were both unpredictable! One or other of us would throw down the gauntlet.......Let the battle commence. One bus would suddenly shoot off, closely followed by the other. Passengers would be scooped up. All the old tricks would be played, leave your back end sticking out at an angle, indicate to get out when you were still taking fares, hang back if not enough bums were on seats. It was all great fun, sometimes I would get the upper hand, sometimes not, but there were enough passengers to go round, and I usually got into Glasgow with a full load. Neil probably did too. It was actually many years later that I discovered Neil was a bus spotter too.

The International Bomber Command Centre (IBCC) a memorial relating the historical impact of and on Bomber Command during the Second World War. Located on Canwick Hill, overlooking the city of Lincoln in Lincolnshire.

 

The city of Lincoln was selected for the location of the IBCC because 27 RAF Bomber Command stations (over a third of all Bomber Command stations) were based in the county during World War II. The large amount of airfields led to Lincolnshire being nicknamed the "Bomber County".

 

Located at Canwick Hill, the centre is just under two and half miles from RAF Waddington, which suffered the greatest losses of any Bomber Command station, and close to the former Avro aircraft production facility at Bracebridge Heath. A view of Lincoln Cathedral, a prominent landmark for aircrews, forms an important part of the vista from the centre of the Memorial Spire.

 

The aim of the IBCC is to tell the personal stories of members of the RAF Bomber Command, ground crew and civilians impacted by the bombing campaigns during the Second World War. The centre will also provide a comprehensive record of the role of Bomber Command's squadrons and to digitally display historical documentation and photographs relating to the activity of Bomber Command.

 

Within the grounds of the International Bomber Command Centre the Spire Memorial was erected on 10 May 2015. The memorial is a spire, reflecting the connection to Lincoln Cathedral. Created out of Corten A weathering steel, it is based on the dimensions of the wingspan of a Lancaster bomber, being 102ft high and 16ft at the base. The Spire was officially unveiled in October 2015 to an audience of 3,600 guests including 312 Bomber veterans.

 

The spire is encircled by walls carrying the names of all 57,871 men and women who gave their lives whilst serving in or supporting Bomber Command. This is the only place in the world where all these losses are memorialised.

 

Information Source:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Bomber_Command_Centre

 

relating to or denoting faculties or phenomena apparently inexplicable by natural laws, esp. involving telepathy or clairvoyance.

 

another sign? indeed.

 

still playing tag with deb, check out her entire collection, it's all eye candy.

  

Uses: Anything relating to finance and money.

 

Free Creative Commons Finance Images... I created these images in my studio and have made them all available for personal or commercial use. Hope you like them and find them useful.

 

To see more of our CC by 2.0 finance images click here... see profile for attribution.

 

Inspiration: dollar, exchange rate, currency, money, US economy

 

The face of the artist is nothing but his mask, since his real "I" remains invisible. According to Steiner, the head having become a kind of hologram of the body, then all the effort of spiritualization of the human being by the artist, will have to relate to the shape of the human head. This is what will happen with the design of the Goetheanum. Once more, we are faced with an objectification of the supersensible domain. The model of Gnostic art for Rudolf Steiner is of course as a work of art the Goetheanum in which he will give substance to his thought. 1965 The model of artistic gnosis for Raymond Abellio is of course a cabalistic diagram: the Universal Senaire Sphere which achieves the synthesis and the program of all his thought. Same. Through these images, we can grasp the artistic project of the first Goetheanum whose architectural elements, such as the columns, the capitals and the windows, owed nothing to chance, neither taste nor even less to functionality, but had to obey requirements particular esoteric and spiritual. The entire Goetheanum was to illustrate the foundations and 16 teachings of Anthroposophy, just as the art of Gothic cathedrals illustrated the foundations and various passages of the sacred history of Christianity. The scene of the Goetheanum was of course the apogee of his artistic project, with the column-seats where the twelve "apostrophes" should sit, next to the carved wooden ensemble, "The Representative of Humanity". which returns as a colored figure under the cupola.

In the rented hall of the Munich State Theatre, the Mystery Plays of Rudolf Steiner were performed each year between 1910 and 1913. The wish arose within the circle around Rudolf Steiner to build an appropriately designed building for these and for performances of eurhythmy. As there were many obstacles from the side of the authorities in Munich, it was decided to redesign the building to be erected on donated land in Dornach near Basel/Switzerland.

Construction began in 1913, meeting with delays during the First World War. Still incomplete, the building burnt down on New Year’s Eve of 1922/23.

The central element, already present in the project in Munich was the ground plan: 2 domes of different sizes resting on 2 large rotundas and interlinked with one another. Because of their particular proportions, they gave the impression both of a single, sculpted space, or also one consisting of 2 separate portions. The pillars along the interior of the building connected with earlier epochs in the development of architecture. Yet each pillar was sculpted individually with a base and a capital whose motifs were carved in such a manner that each new one derived its forms from elements of the previous one. It was Steiner’s attempt to incorporate into the design the laws underlying all development from one form to another in the living world, as in Goethe’s theory of metamorphosis, and to give to these new forms of artistic expression.

Architecture thereby departs from the static, “dead” state and begins to take on elements of a path of animated development. The arts of architecture, sculpture, painting and stained glass windows were united to create a space for the other arts – music, drama and eurhythmy. The building represents an effort to assist what slumbers in each human being as a higher element into full fruition

 

The First Goetheanum: A Centenary for Organic Architecture

John Paull*

University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia *Corresponding Author: j.paull@utas.edu.au, john.paull@mail.com

ABSTRACT

A century has elapsed since the inauguration (on 26 September, 1920) of a remarkable piece of architecture, Rudolf Steiner‟s Goetheanum, headquarters of the Anthroposophy movement, on a verdant hilltop on the outskirts of the Swiss village of Dornach, near Basel. The Goetheanum was an all timber structure, sitting on concrete footings and roofed with Norwegian slate. The building was begun in 1913, and construction progressed through the First World War. Rudolf Steiner‟s intention was to take architecture in a new and organic direction. On New Year‟s Eve, 31 December 1922, the Goetheanum hosted a Eurythmy performance followed by a lecture by Rudolf Steiner for members of the Anthroposophy Society. In the hours that followed, despite the fire-fighting efforts of the Anthroposophists and the local fire brigades, the building burned to the ground. The popular narrative is that the fire was arson but that was never proved. A local watchmaker and anthroposophist, Jakob Ott, was the only person to perish in the fire. He was falsely accused (in death) as „the arsonist‟ but the evidence is rather that he perished in his brave efforts at saving the Goetheanum. Rudolf Steiner saw the “calamity” as an opportunity “to change the sorrowful event into a blessing”. He promptly embarked on plans for a new building, Goetheanum II. This time there was to be “no wood”. The short-lived Goetheanum I had served as a placeholder for Goetheanum II. This new Goetheanum, Rudolf Steiner‟s finest work of organic architecture, is of steel reinforced concrete and today stands on the Dornach hill right on the site of the old Goetheanum.

Keywords: Rudolf Steiner, Anthroposophy, Goethe, Edith Maryon, Jakob Ott, Marie Steiner, fire, arson, disability, Dornach, Switzerland.

INTRODUCTION

The present Goetheanum building, located at Dornach, Switzerland, is one of the great buildings of the twentieth century (). The world has this building, Goetheanum II, because of three strokes of good luck (karma if you prefer), although they did not appear in that guise at the time. First, was a frustrating bureaucratic denial [1], second, was a catastrophic fire that Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925) described as a “calamity” [2], and third was the arrival of a talented English sculptor who became one of Rudolf Steiner‟s closest colleagues [3].

The original Goetheanum was opened on 26 September, 1920. It was designed by the New Age philosopher, Rudolf Steiner. The first plan was to build a centre for Rudolf Steiner‟s Anthroposophy movement in Munich, but the city authorities denied building approval [1, 4]. It was a source of frustration and disappointment at the time, although it was really a stroke of great good fortune. As the Nazi ideology took root in Germany, Rudolf Steiner was unwelcome and threatened in Germany. After two decades of

living in Berlin, Rudolf Steiner relinquished his Berlin apartment in 1923 and never revisited Germany [5].

Alfred Hummel, who served as a member of the Building Office for the Goetheanum, explains of the denial of building approval: “this could be seen as good providence because the building would have run into great difficulties after the outbreak of World War 1. Munich would have been a place of great danger after 1933” [4: 2]. If the Goetheanum had been raised in Munich, it would have stood a good chance of destruction during World War II since the city was carpet bombed, including with magnesium incendiary bombs, in Allied raids. Such an alternative reality was never tested because shortly after the Munich denial, Dr Emil Grossheintz offered a site for the Goetheanum in Switzerland and Rudolf Steiner took up the offer [1].

The first Goetheanum was a building of very short life. Opened in 1920, it was burned to the ground at the end of 1922. This was a blow to the aspirations of the Anthroposophists and the multinational contingent of dedicated workers

Journal of Fine Arts V3 ● I2 ● 2020

1

 

The First Goetheanum: A Centenary for Organic Architecture

who had laboured through the war, many as volunteers, to create this unique building. Rudolf Steiner described it as a “calamity” [1]. But, the destruction proved to be a blessing in disguise because it allowed a rethink of the design. In place of the original rather quaint structure of Goetheanum I, there is now Goetheanum II, which is a truly remarkable and timeless masterpiece.

The English sculptor, Edith Maryon (1872- 1924), arrived in Dornach a few months before the outbreak of war in 1914, to devote her talents to the service of Rudolf Steiner and his Anthroposophy movement. Here she found her spiritual home and she devoted herself forthwith to „the cause‟. Goetheanum I was already designed and under construction by the time Edith Maryon arrived in Dornach, but she was the sculptor on hand, and by then established as one of Rudolf Steiner‟s close collaborators when Goetheanum II was conceived.

On the occasion of the centenary of the opening of Goetheanum I, the present paper, considers the dharma of the building, its reception, and its passing

Methods

Goetheanum I is, a century on from the opening, beyond living memory. The present account draws on contemporary documents of the time, to throw light on the building, its reception, and its calamitous demise. Documents drawn on include eye witness accounts, personal published and manuscript accounts, newspaper accounts, correspondence, and Rudolf Steiner‟s own comments, explanations and lectures. The original sources are quoted where appropriate.

Results

The Goetheanum with which this paper is concerned is the first Goetheanum, Rudolf Steiner referred to it as the “old Goetheanum”[6], the present paper will refer to it generally as „Goetheanum I‟. When building approval was denied in Munich [4], a devotee of Rudolf Steiner‟s Anthroposophy, the Zürich dentist Dr Emil Grosheintz, offered a site on the outskirts of the Swiss village of Dornach, the site of a famous Swiss battle of 1499 where Swabian invaders were repulsed [7]. Dornach is a brief commute (train or tram, about 15 km) to the city of Basel, which sits in the north west of Switzerland near the junction of three country borders (France, Germany and Switzerland).

The Goetheanum was a project of the New Age philosopher and mystic Rudolf Steiner. He had honed his skills as an orator and lecturer as

leader of the German section of the Theosophy Society [8]. Emerging differences between the Theosophists and Rudolf Steiner led to the establishment of a breakaway movement, the Anthroposophy Society. The Goetheanum was to be the home of the new Society, an administrative centre, and a performance space for Steiner‟s Mystery plays.

Rudolf Steiner went on to design various buildings in the growing enclave of Anthroposophists at Dornach [9], but the monumental Goetheanum I was the first venture into Anthroposophical architectural design on a grand scale, and the Goetheanum II was the apogee of Rudolf Steiner‟s architectural manifestations .

THE GREAT WAR

An Australian soldier, arriving in Europe in 1916, sent a postcard home: “Dear Dave, We have seen a lot of ruined towns & villages since we have been in France. This must have been a nice building once, now ruins, Keith” [10].

In the Europe of the time, destruction on an industrial scale was the order of the day. However, Switzerland remained neutral throughout, and her neutrality was honoured by all the belligerents for the duration.

Construction of the Goetheanum at Dornach began in 1913. Construction carried on through the years of World War I (1914-1918). The Russian artist, Assya Turgeniev, recalled: “Already at the beginning of hostilities Dr Steiner tried to speak to us about the background to the events of the war ... The stirred up chauvinistic moods of his listeners thrown together from all quarters of the globe (we were from about 17 different nations) that did not allow him to continue” [11: 99].

Marie Steiner wrote that, as the war stretched on, the work force was depleted by call-up notices: “one after another our artists were called away to the scene of the war. With very few exceptions, there remained only those men who belonged to neutral countries, and the women” [in 12: vii].

The Goetheanum was built during the Great War using volunteer and paid labour. They came and went. Amongst the privations and avalanche of news of death and destruction of the war: “the work went on as best it could and as far as our strength allowed” [11: 136]. “From all quarters of the globe people gathered in Dornach to help with the building. It was a motley, many-sided, multilingual company”[11: 57]. “Our carving group grew to about 70 in number, not counting those who put in a short appearance ... All financial affairs were

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attended to by Miss Stinde. For those who needed it she arranged a modest remuneration” [11: 58].

The artist Assya Turgeniev remembered: “we were only a bunch of dilettantes ... Only the knowledge that we were working together on a great future task and Dr Steiner‟s helping guidance brought order into this chaos. It remains a wonder that the work progresses without any kind of organisation” [11: 59].

With the outbreak of war, “A heavy gloom settled over Dornach ... a European war, was now on our very doorstep [11: 68]. Goetheanum volunteers were called up to return to their respective countries: “Many friends had been recruited and had to depart” [11: 69]. “Our group of wood- carvers grew less and less as further friends were called up” [11: 79].

Figure 1. View of the Goetheanum with blossom trees [source: 13].

A NEW STYLE OF ARCHITECTURE

Rudolf Steiner spoke of the Goetheanum, “The Dornach Building”, in a lecture to Anthro- posophists at The Hague in February 1921: “I have said that the style of this Goetheanum has arisen out of the same sources that gave birth to spiritual science. The endeavour to create a new style of imperfections which must accompany such architecture is accompanied by inevitable risks, by all the a first attempt” [14: 150]. Steiner elaborated: “there is not a single symbol, not a single allegory, but rather we have attempted to give everything a truly artistic form [14: 151].

Organic Architecture

Rudolf Steiner explained his Goetheanum as a manifestation of a new organic architecture: “Concrete and wood are both employed to give rise to an architectural style that may perhaps be described as the transition from previous geometrical, symmetrical, mechanical, static- dynamic architectural styles into an organic style” [14: 153]. The plinth was concrete and the superstructure was timber.

The Goetheanum was organic but not imitative of nature: “Not that some sort of organic form has been imitated in the Dornach building. That is not the case” [14: 154]. Rudolf Steiner informed his audience that: “The least and the greatest in an organic whole has its place in the organism, its absolutely right form. All this has passed over into the architectural conception of the Dornach building” [14: 154]

Rudolf Steiner acknowledged the German writer and polymath, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749 -1832): “it has been my aim, in accordance with Goethe‟s theory of metamorphosis, to steep myself in nature‟s creation of organic forms, and from these to obtain organic forms that, when metamorphosed, might make a single whole of the Dornach building. In other words, organic forms of such a kind that each single form must be in precisely the place it is” [14: 154].

Windows, as all the elements of the Goetheanum, were conceived of as part of an organic whole: “we are handing over this auxiliary building [the Glass House, Glashaus] ... in order that they

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may create something that in the fairest sense may be a living member in the whole organism of our building” [12: 15].

Rudolf Steiner was aware already that not all would be won over to his organic architecture: "I well know how much may be said against this organic principle of building from the point of view of older architectural styles. This organic style, however, has been attempted in the architectural conception of the building at Dornach ... You will therefore find in the Dornach building certain organic forms... carved out of wood, as embodied in the capitals of the columns at the entrance” [14: 154-6]

THE OPENING

The Italian artist Ernesto Genoni, who later spent a year with Rudolf Steiner at Dornach (in 1924) [15, 16] and was a member of Rudolf Steiner‟s First Class, wrote two (somewhat cryptic) accounts of his first visit to the Goetheanum on the occasion of the inauguration (26 September, 1920).

In one account Ernesto Genoni relates: “In Milan I came in touch with the Anthroposophical Society where I took part for a whole year in the study of Anthroposophy. Then my sister Mrs [Rosa] Podreider, for certain business reasons, sent me to Lausanne and said „While you are there you can go as far as the Goetheanum‟. Eventually I arrived in Dornach at the inauguration of the first Goetheanum. There Mrs [Charlotte] Ferreri introduced me to Dr Steiner and I was received by him with great warmth. Unfortunately he was speaking in German which I did not know, but by his long handshake

and smiling expression of the face I could feel his sincere welcome. Here I would like to add this - That was the only time among all the people I met at the Goetheanum that anyone gave me a feeling that I was truly welcome ... So much did I feel this isolation that I decided to return to Italy” [17: 7].

In another account of his Goetheanum inauguration visit, Ernesto Genoni writes: “In autumn 1920 Rosa sent me to Lausanne for selling some opossum skins and then I went to Dornach. What a strange impression I received from the first view of the Goetheanum building ... The short conversation with Fräulein Vreede ... chilly! Frau Ferreri ... the meeting with the Doctor ... the bewildering impression of the interior of the Goetheanum. I could not enter in such saturated life of the spirit and after a few days I left ... the reproach from Miss Maryon. In the following years it was a painful search to find my way in life” [18: 19] (author‟s note: ellipses are in the original handwritten manuscript).

ART OF THE TOUR

Rudolf Steiner wanted the art of the Goetheanum to speak directly to the viewer without intermediary explanations: “Sometimes I had occasion to show visitors the Goetheanum personally. Then I used to say that all „explanation‟ of the forms and colours was in fact distasteful to me. Art does not want to be brought home to us through thoughts, but should rather be received in the immediate sight and feeling of it” [1: 3]. The photographs in the present paper offer an insight into the experience of Steiner‟s visitors (Figs. 1, 2 & 3).

Figure 2. Rear view of the Goetheanum with Heizhaus to the right (postcard)

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NEWS IN THE ANTIPODES

The Register newspaper in Adelaide, Australia‟s city of churches, informed its readers in 1925 about Rudolf Steiner and the Goetheanum: “a man who built a building large enough to contain an audience of a thousand people, roofed by intersecting domes, the larger of them slightly greater span than St Peter‟s, earned a title of serious consideration from all who profess the art of architecture. The building owed nothing to traditional styles. No effect was made by its designer to present an intellectual conception of what the temples of ancient Greece could contribute to the art of modern Europe, nor were the forms of medieval Gothic borrowed and adjusted. In no sense was it a drawing board design.” [19].

The Register continued: “It was conceived and designed, as architecture should be and must be, in three dimensions, and it had to be seen in three dimensions to be understood ... as a first effort in a new presentation of architecture it has probably no rival in the history of art” [19].

Readers in South Australia were informed that the Goetheanum: “was built on the summit of one of the foothills of the Jura mountains, near the village of Dornach, standing out against a background of rugged hills and rocky cliffs ... He deliberately discards the limitations of squares, and one feels that his construction is organic rather than static” [19].

Figure 3. Interior of the Goetheanum [source: 13]. Journal of Fine Arts V3 ● I2 ● 2020

The Name

Even the name of the Goetheanum apparently drew offence. „Wokeness' is not such a twenty- first century phenomenon as some might suppose. Rudolf Steiner explained: “Many people were scandalised at the very name, „Goetheanum‟, because they failed to consider the fundamental reason for this name, and how it is connected with all that is cultivated there as Anthroposophy ... this Anthroposophy is the spontaneous result of my devotion for more than four decades to Goethe‟s world-conception” [2: 1].

Of the name, Rudolf Steiner explained: “this Goetheanum was first called „Johannesbau‟ by those friends of the anthroposophical world- conception who made it possible to erect such a building ... for me this building is a Goetheanum, for I derived my world-view in a living way from Goethe ... I have always regarded this as a sort of token of gratitude for what can be gained from Goethe, an act of homage to the towering personality of Goethe ... the anthroposophical world-view feels the deepest gratitude for what has come into the world through Goethe” [2: 2].

Second Thoughts

Less than a year after the opening of the Goetheanum, and even while the building remained incomplete (it was never entirely completed), Rudolf Steiner revealed that he was thinking of a Goetheanum Mark 2.

At a lecture in Berne on 29 June 1921 titled „The Architectural Conception of the Goetheanum‟ Rudolf Steiner told his audience that: “Naturally one can criticise in every possible way this architectural style which has been formed out of spiritual science. But nothing that makes its first appearance is perfect, and I can assure you that I know all its flaws and that I would be the first to say: If I had to put up this building a second time, it would be out of the same background and out of the same laws, but in most of its details, and perhaps even totally, it would be different” [20: 42]. As events played out just eighteen months later, it proved to be a remarkably prescient statement.

Bad Timing

For sheer bad timing (and perhaps prolixity), a fund raising letter dated 25 December 1922 by the British Anthroposophical Society in London would be hard to beat. The letter explained that: “the Goetheanum expresses in a language of line, form and colour those thoughts and ideas which a knowledge of higher spiritual worlds

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produces in the artist. As a work of art the Goetheanum can only be compared, in its tendency to the supreme artistic achievements of humanity, for it produces in the onlooker the perception of that interpenetration of object and idea of which the true world of art is the outcome, while it raises him to that point within his inner being where an ideal spiritual world is felt to be born into physical reality”.

Then the fund raising letter gets to the point: “The Goetheanum still remains to be completed. The funds at Dr Steiner‟s disposal are drawing to an end. Money is urgently needed to carry on the work. The work MUST NOT STOP ... Let each give what he or she can. In the old days ladies sold their jewellery to enable the foundation stone to be laid” [21].

Just six days after the date of the London fund raiser letter, the Goetheanum burned to the ground (on the night of 31 December 1922). Rudolf Steiner described the occurrence as a “dreadful calamity”. He reminded his audience of “The terrible catastrophe of last New Year‟s Eve, the destruction by fire of the Goetheanum, which will remain a painful memory” [2: 1].

Rudolf Steiner explained that the Anthroposophical Society was misunderstood and that there was calumny afoot: “That dreadful calamity was just the occasion to bring to light what fantastic notions there are in the world linked with all that this Goetheanum in Dornach intended to do and all that was done in it. It was said that the most frightful superstitions were disseminated there, that all sorts of things inimical to religion were being practiced; and there is even talk of all kinds of spiritualistic seances, of nebulous mystic performances, and so on” [2: 1].

The Fire

A local newspaper, the Basler Nachricten reported the news of the New Year fire at the Goetheanum: “The Goetheanum in Dornach-Arlesheim is on fire, was the terrible alarm message that flew like wildfire ... just before the bells sounded in solemn ringing ... On New Year‟s Eve ... at 7 pm , the Goetheanum had a presentation of Eurythmy and a lecture by Rudolf Steiner ... The last audience had left the lecture hall by 9.45 pm ... immediately after the seriousness of the situation was clear, the calls for help were despatched to the surrounding villages and to Basel ... The Dornachers were the first to arrive at 11:45 pm, followed by the Arlesheimers a quarter of an hour later ... Because of repair work, there was scaffolding where the fire was first seen” [22].

Rudolf Steiner put the fire as starting between 5:15 pm and 6:20 pm [23].

Rudolf Steiner related that: “one hour after the last word had been spoken, I was summoned to the fire at the Goetheanum. At the fire of the Goetheanum we passed the whole of that New Year night”. He stated that it was “exactly at the moment in its evolution when the Goetheanum was ready to become the bearer of the renewal of spiritual life”[6].

A newspaper gave an account of the events: “When the double cupolas fell in, there shot up heavenwards a giant sheaf of fire, and a torrent of sparks threatened the whole neighbor-hood so that fire-men had to be sent in all directions to prevent the spread of disaster” [24]. Later, on New Year‟s Day “The sky was veiled in clouds as if to check the great outpouring of people which took place from Basel and its neighbor- hood. For nearly the whole population there was one urge: Off to Dornach! Hour after hour unbroken streams of people climbed the muddy roads and slippery fields, whilst other streams, equally unbroken, flowed down again” [24].

Rudolf Steiner later referred to “the pain for which there are no words” [1: 7]. However, on the day, as Albert Steffen relates, Rudolf Steiner kept his nerve and declared the continuance of the New Year‟s programme: “In the morning Dr Steiner ... was still there ... „We will go on with our lectures as notified‟, he said, and gave instructions that the pools of water in the „Schreinerei‟ (the temporary shed used for lectures) and the dirt carried in by muddied shoes should be removed” [25: 13].

Seat of the Fire

Albert Steffen (1884-1963), Anthroposophist, writer and editor, wrote of the seat of the fire: “Unfortunately a scaffolding, necessary for certain work, had been put up just in the place where the fire was first noticed” [25: 12]. A local Basel newspaper had reported likewise: “Because of repair work, there was scaffolding where the fire was first seen” [22].

Ninety nine years later, accounts of the Notre Dame Cathedral fire of 2019 are reminiscent of accounts of the Goetheanum fire. “The fire began at about 18:43 local time on Monday (15 April). Pictures show flames shooting up around the spire, shortly after the doors were shut to visitors for the day. The blaze spread rapidly along the wooden roof as onlookers gathered on the ground below” [26]. Another account states

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that: “Flames that began in the early evening burst through the roof of the centuries-old cathedral and engulfed the spire, which collapsed, quickly followed by the roof” [27]. Builder‟s scaffolding for repair work are also a part of the Notre Dame story: “Much of the roof was covered in scaffolding as part of a big renovation programme, which is being investigated as a possible cause of the blaze” [26]. Two leading candidates for the cause of the Notre Dame fire are identified: “The catastrophic fire at the Notre Dame Cathedral could have been caused by a burning cigarette or an electrical malfunction, French prosecutors said ... Prosecutors are now looking at the possibility of negligence” [28].

Of the Goetheanum fire, a Basel newspaper reported: “Dr Steiner ... According to him,, who will probably know his way around the construction of the building, the fire must have started between 5:00 and 7:00 in the evening .... The smoke was noticed a little after 10 pm in the so-called „white room‟ on the third floor” [23]. The room, the apparent seat of the fire, was used by one or some Eurythmists as a change room [23]. It was reported that “there were no electrical systems at the fire site”[22].A discarded cigarette butt, a neglected candle or a portable camp stove or heater (the outside temperature would have been hovering around 0o C), or a flimsy Eurythmy costume draped carelessly on a hot light bulb are candidates as potential ignition sources.

The Goetheanum was insured for CHF 3,800,000 and with a further CHF 500,000 for furniture and equipment [22]. A proof of contributory negligence would have voided or severely prejudiced an insurance claim. This, combined with the prevailing persecution complex of the Anthroposophists, was a great motivation for fuelling suspicions of arson. To this day, the cause of the Goetheanum blaze remains an open question [29]. The timely payout of the insurance facilitated the rebuild of the Goetheanum, and the local Building Insurance Act was revised “to protect the state institution against such disasters” [30].

Jakob Ott

One person lost their life in the fire. That was Jakob Ott, a watchmaker from nearby Arlesheim, and a member of the Anthroposophy Society.

Assya Tergeniev recorded that: “When the glowing ashes had cooled, some days later, a human skeleton with a deformed spine was found therein. This deformity was the same as

that of a watchmaker who had disappeared at the time of the fire. It was officially announced that he had come to grief while helping with the rescue work” [11: 129].

A Basel newspaper reported that “Human remains were found in the rubble of the burned- down Goetheanum on Wednesday [10 January]. It is not yet certain whether it is the missing watchmaker Ott ... These are the bones of a single person, who presumably fell from the floor of the dome into the depth of the basement. The skull was smashed ... no one apart from the watchmaker Ott has been missing since that fateful night ... the bone remains were almost completely covered with slate residue from the roof of the dome. The casualty must have plunged into the stage basement below the collapsing dome at 12 midnight. Although all fire-fighting teams had withdrawn at 11:30 pm in view of the building, which was at risk and could no longer be saved, it is easily possible that, due to the thick smoke, a person who might already have been stunned had not been noticed” [31].

Conspiracy theorists of the day, and later commentators, have attributed the fire to arson, but that is not proven, and even named the supposed arsonist as Jakob Ott, and that is proven false. Research of Günther Aschoff has established: “the 28-year-old watchmaker Jakob Ott from Neu-Arlesheim had died in the fire. But he could not have been the arsonist, because he was home all New Year's Eve, then in the evening at a choir rehearsal and at the year-end service in the Reformed Church. (He was a member of the Reformed Church and of the Anthroposophical Society, he procured many advertisements for the magazine "Das Goetheanum" and had also collected signatures for the naturalization of Rudolf Steiner). At about 22.30 he was on the tram on the way home. When he saw the clouds of smoke at the Goetheanum in the moonlit night, he ran up the mountain, to help, which he used to do whenever he was needed. He was present when the fire was extinguished in the small dome at the top of the building, but when the others had already retreated because of all the smoke”. Jakob Ott failed to evacuate likely because he was overcome by smoke or that he lost his footing [32].

Jakob Ott was reportedly just 1.5 metres tall, and a hunchback with “a backbone curvature due to an accident” [31]. Another account simply sated: “Ott had a hump” [30]. He was a man of modest means and lacking influential friends. As a disabled figure, Jakob Ott was a

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ready candidate for „othering‟ and he made a convenient scapegoat for the smug. A Basel newspaper reported: “Dr Steiner, whom we also interviewed regarding Ott ... He himself has no suspicion of Ott” [23]. Rudolf Steiner subsequently attended Jakob Ott‟s funeral [33].

It appears that Rudolf Steiner never referred to the fire as „arson‟. Albert Steffen wrote of „The destruction of the Goetheanum by fire”, he did not write of „by arson‟ [25]. Arson does not rate in the top ten causes of house fires [34]. Arson does not rate as one of the nominated “leading causes of warehouse structure fires” [35]. If the arson conspiracy theory fails, then the quest for „the arsonist‟ is extinguished.

The demonising of Jakob Ott has been an unworthy episode propagated by some who should have known better. One hysterical account about Jakob Ott appears to be mere flights of fancy, ungrounded in fact, and owes more to a fertile imagination than sound research [e.g. 36]. It appears that Marie Steiner has fuelled conspiracy theories: “One of the suspects was the watchmaker Jakob Ott from Allesheim , whose skeleton was found ten days after the fire in the ashes of the Goetheanum which had burned down. It was identified by a spinal defect. Later Marie Steiner wrote „From a skeleton that was discovered, it can be established that the arsonist was burned‟‟ [quoted in 33: 904].

Jakob Ott (1895-1923) died a miserable death by incineration, in a worthy cause of trying to save the Goetheanum. Whether he was overcome by smoke and/or lost his footing, the action of entering a burning building is the act of a brave man.

A Blessing

Exactly a year on from the fire, Rudolf Steiner reflected on the events of New Year‟s Eve, 1922, at the Goetheanum. The venue for the lectures was now the much less salubrious (and cold) Schreinerei, the carpentry workshop, adjacent to the site of the remnants of the fire [37].

Rudolf Steiner referred to the “painful memory” of the final lecture that he had delivered at the Goetheanum, what he now called “our old Goetheanum” [6]. Remembering the night, Rudolf Steiner reminded his listeners that; “the flames bust from our beloved Goetheanum ... but out of the very pain we pledge ourselves to remain loyal to the Spirit to which we erected the Goetheanum, building it up through ten years of work” [6].

Changing tack, Rudolf Steiner urged his audience to move on from the “tragedy” and offered them the recipe for doing just that: “if we are able to change the pain and grief into the impulses to action then we shall also change the sorrowful event into a blessing. The pain cannot thereby be made less, but it rests with us to find in the pain the urge to action ... Let us carry over the soul of the Goetheanum into the Cosmic New Year, lets try to erect in the new Goetheanum a worth memorial to the old!” [6: 4].

Beyond Wood

Goetheanum I was an all-timber construct. One of the building officers related that: “our first director had implored us not to use any iron nail, coach screw or sheet metal in the main wooden structure. These artificial building materials were not to be brought in connection with the noble organic timber” [4: 15]

A few months after the fire, Rudolf Steiner, writing in the April 1923 issue of the periodical „Anthroposophy‟, was quick to rule in a rebuild, that was never in doubt in his mind, while at the same time he ruled out rebuilding in timber: “In rebuilding the Goetheanum we shall probably need to think on different lines ... There can, of course, be no question of a second Building in wood” [38: 38].

In 1923 Rudolf Steiner wrote to the Central Administration of the local Swiss Canton Solothurn: “The new building will stand directly on the site of the old. With regard to the construction of the building as a whole, we bring to your attention that it is to be executed as a solid structure and that all its structural parts, all floors and bearing walls, as well as the roof trusses will be carried out in reinforced concrete. We plan to employ a purely steel construction for the support of the floor of the main stage alone. Timber will be used nowhere as a constructional element in the new building, but exclusively for doors, windows, flooring and floor construction over solid slab floors, for rafters and for fixtures and cladding. As roof material the same Norwegian slate as was used on the old Goetheanum is to be employed. ... We are convinced that the entire building, when completed in this type of construction, will be able to meet all requirements as to fire safety to an unusual degree” [39: 52].

Concrete

By the time of Goetheanum II, Rudolf Steiner already had some experience of reinforced

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concrete as a building medium. The rather fanciful Heizhaus (Boiler House) of 1914 [9], located nearby the Goetheanum, and still standing today, is a creative exercise in concrete. Rudolf Steiner described it as “a remarkable structure” and so it is [14] (Fig.2).

Rudolf Steiner was well aware of criticism of his first adventure in concrete, the Boiler House. He proffered this rejoinder: “This is what is subject to the most severe criticism from some quarters ... I undertook to create ... a shell of concrete - a material which is extremely difficult to mould artistically. Those who criticise this structure today do not pause to reflect what would stand there if no endeavour had been made to mould something out of concrete - a material so difficult to mould. There could be nothing but a brick chimney. I wonder if that would be more beautiful than this, which of course is only a first attempt to give a certain style to something made of concrete. It has many defects, for it is only a first attempt to mould something artistic out of materials such as concrete” [14: 157].

Edith Maryon, Sculptor

Edith Maryon (1872-1924) stepped into Rudolf Steiner‟s life in 1914. It was just before the outbreak of World War I and she quickly became one of his closest confidants. Edith Maryon was an English sculptor trained at the Royal College of Arts in London.

As a trained and skilled sculptor, Edith Maryon brought new skills into the inner sanctum of Rudolf Steiner‟s bevy of talented women, which included the mathematician Elizabeth Vreede and medical doctor Ita Wegman. Goetheanum I was already under construction when Edith Maryon arrived at Dornach. Edith Maryon however quickly proved her skills in collaborative architectural design not just of sculptural elements within Goetheanum I. Together they created the Eurythmy Houses I, II and III (Eurythmiehäuser), a little way down the Dornach hill from the Goetheanum [9].

Edith Maryon brought a feminine influence and a sculptor's panache. Under the collaborative influence of Edith Maryon, Rudolf Steiner was liberated from the overt Freudian features of his earlier creations with his phallic Boiler House and the double-breasted Glass House (Glashaus) and Goetheanum I.

The clay models for Goetheanum II were constructed during 1923, the year of closest

collaboration between Rudolf Steiner and Edith Maryon. At the end of the year, at the Christmas Conference of 1923 Rudolf Steiner appointed Edith Maryon as the head of the Sculpture Section (plastic arts) of the School of Spiritual Science of the Goetheanum [40]. Sadly, by then her health was deteriorating and she passed away four months later. Rudolf Steiner‟s own health took a blow at the close of the Christmas Conference on 31 December 1923. He struggled on through nine months of 1924, before retreating to his sick bed in September, and he passed away six months later.

It could be regarded as fortuitous that Goetheanum I was destroyed during Rudolf Steiner‟s own lifetime and that he and Edith Maryon had developed a close collaborative working embrace that could bring the clay sculptural models of Goetheanum II quickly to fruition. Goetheanum II is Rudolf Steiner‟s final contribution to his portfolio of Anthroposophic buildings and to organic architecture, and more than any of his prior works, it is a monumental and masterful work of sculpture.

CONCLUSION

The first Goetheanum was both success and failure. It was a bold experiment in organic design, a proof of concept that such a vision could be translated into reality, that despite the disruption of war, work could proceed, funds could be raised, a distinctive building could be manifested, and the enthusiasm and talent of a multitude of volunteers could be harnessed. However, an all timber building is a conflagration waiting to happen, it is just the timing of the conflagration that is the uncertainty. In the case of Goetheanum I, the conflagration came quickly, before even the building was completed, before a Mystery Play was ever performed in the space, remembering that a dedicated performance space for such plays had been a large part of the rationale for the building.

The dharma of Goetheanum I was to serve as a placeholder for Goetheanum II. The new Goetheanum took the money from the insurance of the demise of the old Goetheanum, and embraced the lesson that an all-timber construction is not a recipe for longevity. Goetheanum II harnessed the sculptural skills by then on hand, and brought them to the fore to create what is not only a magnificent sculpture in concrete, but is also a functioning building and a delight to work in. Flushed away is the quaintness of Goetheanum I. The new Goetheanum is a bold twentieth

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The First Goetheanum: A Centenary for Organic Architecture

century building worthy of the twenty first century and beyond.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Thank you to to members of the Goetheanum Archive (Dokumentation am Goetheanum Bibliothek Kunstsammlung Archiv) for kind

assistance in navigating the collection and to DeepL.com/Translator and Google Translate for assistance with various translations.

REFERENCES

[1] Steiner, R., The Goetheanum in the ten years of its life, I. Anthroposophy, 1923. 2(1-2): p. 2-10.

[2] Steiner, R., What was the purpose of the Goetheanum and what is the task of Anthroposophy, A lecture at Basel, 9 April, 1923. 1923, Fremont, IL: Rudolf Steiner Archive, .

[3] Paull, J., A portrait of Edith Maryon: Artist and Anthroposophist. Journal of Fine Arts, 2018. 1(2): p. 8-15.

[4] Hummel, A., A Diary: Life and Work During the Building of the First Goetheanum. 2003, (Trans. Friedwart Bock from c.1955 German original), Aberdeen: Camphill Architects.

[5] Paull, J., Rudolf Steiner: At Home in Berlin. Journal of Biodynamics Tasmania, 2019. 132: p. 26-29.

[6] Steiner, R., World History in the Light of Anthroposophy, A lecture at Dornach, 31 December 1923. 1923, Fremont, IL: Rudolf Steiner Archive, .

[7] Fahrni, D., An Outline History of Switzerland From the Origins to the Present Day. 1997, Zürich: Pro Helvetia Arts, Council of Switzerland.

[8] Steiner, R., The Story of My Life. 1928, London: Anthroposophical Publishing Co.

[9] Kugler, J., ed. Architekturführer Goetheanumhügel die Dornacher Anthroposophen-Kolonie. 2011, Verlag Niggli: Zurich.

[10] Keith, Postcard (with handwritten message on rear): Ypres - La Salle Pauwels (Halles d'Ypres) avant et après le Bombardment. The Pauwels Gallery (Halles of Ypres) before the Bombard- ment and after. 1916, Paris: Visé Paris (private collection).

[11] Turgeniev, A., Reminiscences of Rudolf Steiner and Work on the First Goetheanum. 2003, Forest Row, UK: Temple Lodge.

[12] Steiner, R., Ways to A New Style in Architecture: Five lectures by Rudolf Steiner given during the building of the First Goetheanum, 1914. 1927, London: Anthroposophical Publishing Company.

[13] Uehli, E., Rudolf Steiner als Künstler. 1921, Stuttgart: Der Kommnede Tag.

[14]

[15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21]

[22] [23]

[24]

[25] [26] [27]

[28]

[29] [30] [31]

Steiner, R., The Dornach Building, Lecture at The Hague, 28 Feb 1921, in Rudolf Steiner Architecture, A. Beard, Editor. 2003, Sophia Books: Forest Row.

Paull, J., Ernesto Genoni: Australia's pioneer of biodynamic agriculture. Journal of Organics, 2014. 1(1): p. 57-81.

Paull, J., The Anthroposophic Art of Ernesto Genoni, Goetheanum, 1924. Journal of Organics, 2016. 3(2): p. 1-24.

Genoni, E., Personal memoir. c.1970, 9 pp., typewritten manuscript, last date mentioned is 1966, A4. Private collection.

Genoni, E., Personal memoir. c.1955, 26 pp., handwritten manuscript, last date mentioned is 1952, school exercise book. Private collection.

The Register, Modernity in Art - New Architectural Forms. The Register (Adelaide, Australia), 1925. 31 December: p. 5.

Biesantz, H. and A. Klingborg, The Goetheanum: Rudolf Steiner's Architectural Impulse. 1979, London: Rudolf Steiner Press.

Metaxa, G., Typed letter, Dear Friends and fellow members. 2 pages. 25 December. Anthroposophical Society. 1922, 46 Gloucester Place, London.

Basler Nachrichten, Das Goetheanum niedergebrannt. Basler Nachrichten, 1923. 2 January.

Basler Nachrichten, Zum Brand im Goetheanum - Ott in Verdacht als Brandstifter oder Mitwisser. Basler Nachrichten, 1923. 5 January.

National Zeitung, The account of the burning of the Goetheanum from the National Zeitung. Anthroposophy, 1923. 2(1-2, January- February): p. 18-19.

Steffen, A., The destruction of the Goetheanum by fire. Anthroposophy, 1923. 2(1-2): p. 10-13.

BBC News, Notre-Dame: The story of the fire in graphics and images. BBC News, 2019. 16 April.

ABC News, Notre Dame fire: Paris cathedral spire collapses as blaze tears through landmark. ABC News, 2019. 16 April.

Vandoorne, S., A. Crouin, and B. Britton, Notre Dame fire could have been started by a cigarette or an electrical fault, prosecutors say. CNN, 2019. 26 June.

Balzer, M., The unsolved Goetheanum case: A play is devoted to the fire of New Year'ds Eve 1922. Aargauer Zeitung, 2019. 2 May.

Basler Nachrichten, Zur Untersuchung über den Goetheanum-Brand. Basler Nachrichten, 1923. 11 January.

Neue Zürcher Nachrichten, Ein wichtiger Fund bei den Aufräumungsarbeiten am Goetheanum. Neue Zürcher Nachrichten, 1923. 13 January.

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The First Goetheanum: A Centenary for Organic Architecture

[32] Aschoff, G., Neues vom Goetheanum-Brand. Das Goetheanum, 2007. 1-2.

[33] Prokofieff, S.O., May Human Beings Hear It!: The Mystery of the Christmas Conference. 2014, Forest Row, UK: Temple Lodge.

[34] Real Insurance, The most common causes of house fires. 2013, Sydney: Real Insurance.

[35] Campbell, R., Structure Fires in Warehouse Properties. 2016, Quincy, MA: National Fire Protection Association.

[36] Ravenscroft, T., The Spear of Destiny: The Occult Power Behind the Spear Which Pierced the Side of Christ and how Hitler inverted the Force in a bid to conquer the World. 1982, York Beach, ME: Samuel Weiser Inc.

[37] Paull, J., Dr Rudolf Steiner's Shed: The Schreinerei at Dornach. Journal of Bio-Dynamics Tasmania, 2018. 127(September): p. 14-19.

[38] Steiner, R., The Goetheanum in the ten years of its life, VI. Anthroposophy, 1923. 2(4): p. 37-41.

[39] Raab, R., A. Klingborg, and A. Fant, Eloquent Concrete: How Rudolf Steiner Employed Reinforced Concrete. 1979, London: Rudolf Steiner Press.

[40] Steiner, M., Proceedings of the Founding Conference of the General Anthroposophical Society. 1944, Roneoed publication. "As edited and published by Marie Steiner in 1944. Translated by Frances E Dawson": "For Members of the General Anthroposophical Society".

  

hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02566578/document

Today in Ireland and in the US new regulations relating to drones has been introduced [effective from the 21st of December 2015]. There are many similarities in the regulations but there is one major differences in that here in Ireland they have not mention the penalties for failure to register but in the US the cost of failure to register appears to be rather extreme … “civil penalties up to $27,500, or criminal penalties up to 3 years in prison and $250,000.” According to the minister the aim here in Ireland is to encourage drone users to be responsible citizens.

  

I have included the press releases from both administrations, have a read and see what you think.

  

Thursday, 17th December 2015: The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) today announced a new drone regulation which includes the mandatory registration of all drones weighing 1kg or more from Monday, 21st December 2015.

 

The use of drones worldwide is expanding rapidly and there are estimated to be between 4,000 – 5,000 drones already in use in Ireland. Ireland has taken a proactive role in this fast emerging area and is currently one of only a handful of EU Member states that has legislation governing the use of drones.

 

The new legislation is intended to further enhance safety within Ireland and specifically addresses the safety challenges posed by drones.

 

From 21st December 2015, all drones weighing 1kg or more must be registered with the IAA via www.iaa.ie/drones. Drone registration is a simple two-step process. To register a drone, the registrant must be 16 years of age or older (Drones operated by those under 16 years of age must be registered by a parent or legal guardian). A nominal fee will apply from February 2016 but this has been initially waived by the IAA in order to encourage early registration.

  

Mr Ralph James, IAA Director of Safety Regulation, said

 

“Ireland is already recognised worldwide as a centre of excellence for civil aviation and the drone sector presents another major opportunity for Ireland. We’re closely working with industry to facilitate its successful development here. At the same time, safety is our top priority and we must ensure that drones are used in a safe way and that they do not interfere with all other forms of aviation.

 

Mr James explained that drone registration has been made a mandatory requirement as this will help the IAA to monitor the sector in the years ahead. The IAA encourages all drone operators to take part in training courses which are available through a number of approved drone training organisations.

 

“We would strongly encourage drone operators to register with us as quickly as possible, to complete a training course and to become aware of their responsibilities. People operating drones must do so in safe and responsible manner and in full compliance with the new regulations”, he said.

 

Welcoming the introduction of drone regulation, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe TD highlighted the importance of the new legislation and commended the IAA for the efficient manner to have the new registration system in place so quickly.

 

“The core safety message promoted today advocates the safe use of drones in civilian airspace. The development of drone technology brings opportunities as well as challenges for businesses and services in Ireland. I expect hundreds if not thousands of drones to be bought as presents this Christmas so getting the message to ensure that new owners and operators are aware of their responsibilities and the requirement to register all drones over 1 kg from 21st December 2015 is key. Tremendous potential exists for this sector and Ireland is at the forefront of its development. The speedy response by the IAA to this fast developing aviation area will make sure that drones are properly regulated and registered for use. As a result, Ireland is well placed to exploit the drone sector and to ensure industry growth in this area,” he said.

  

The new legislation prohibits users from operating their drones in an unsafe manner. This includes never operating a drone:

 

• if it will be a hazard to another aircraft in flight

• over an assembly of people

• farther than 300m from the operator

• within 120m of any person, vessel or structure not under the operator’s control

• closer than 5km from an aerodrome

• in a negligent or reckless manner so as to endanger life or property of others

• over 400ft (120m) above ground level

• over urban areas

• in civil of military controlled airspace

• in restricted areas (e.g. military installations, prisons, etc.)

• unless the operator has permission from the landowner for takeoff and landing.

  

For further information please visit www.iaa.ie/drones and see the IAA’s detailed Q&A sheet.

  

The Federal Aviation Administration has officially launched the drone registration program first reported in October. Drone operators are required to register their UAVs with the Unmanned Aircraft System registry starting December 21. Failure to register could result in criminal and civil penalties.

 

Under the new system, all aircraft must be registered with the FAA including those 'operated by modelers and hobbyists.' Once registered, drone operators must carry the registration certificate during operation. This new system only applies to drones weighing more than 0.55lbs/250g and less than 55lbs/25kg. The only exception to the registration requirement is indoor drone flights.

 

Required registration information includes a mailing address and physical address, email address, and full names; however, no information on the drone's make, model, or serial number is required from recreational users. Non-recreational users will need to provide drone information, including serial number, when that particular registration system goes live.

 

Failure to register could result in civil penalties up to $27,500, or criminal penalties up to 3 years in prison and $250,000. A $5 registration charge is applied, but will be refunded to those who register before January 20. The registration certificate is sent in an email to be printed at home.

Urban art is a style of art that relates to cities and city life. In that way urban art combines street art and graffiti and is often used to summarize all visual art forms arising in urban areas, being inspired by urban architecture or thematizing urban live style.

  

The notion of 'Urban Art' developed from street art that is primarily concerned with graffiti culture. Urban art represents a broader cross section of artists that as well as covering traditional street artists also covers artists using more traditional media but with a subject matter that deals with contemporary urban culture and political issues.”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_art

  

“Wild Flowers are not weeds"

Street Art is the modern, urban wildflowers

What's the difference between Graffiti Tagging and Street Art?

1. Street Art is constructive, Graffiti Tagging is destructive.

2. Street Art adorns the urban landscape, Graffiti Tagging scars it and accelerates urban decay.

3. Street Art stretches your mind, Graffiti Tagging is a slap in your face.

4. Street Art is about the audience, Graffiti Tagging is about the tagger.

5. Street Art says "Have you thought about this?", Graffiti Tagging says "I tag, therefore I exist".

6. Street Art was done with a smile, Graffiti Tagging was done with a scowl.

7. Street Art takes skill, Graffiti Tagging takes balls.

8. We mourn losing Street Art and celebrate losing Graffiti Tagging.

Good Street Art is great, good Graffiti Tagging is gone!

”http://www.graffitiactionhero.org/graffiti-tag-vs-street-art.html

  

Additional interesting sites

www.osnatfineart.com/urban-art.jsp

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Street_art

 

Darwin_16xyz

relates to Sammy´s www.flickr.com/photos/196910382@N03/53321045230/in/dateta...

** This is an 8.5 minute video so has to be downloaded to see the full version as only 3 minutes are shown in the Flickr interface.

** For non-Pro Flickr users, the download limit appears to be 3 minutes on download as well, and so there is a link here-

www.rail.tightfitz.com/Video/Barrow_Hill_&_Stavely_Ca...

 

* Barrow Hill

So, on Saturday May 28th, just before moving on to the Canal Basin at Staveley and the weekend celebrations there, a small diversion was made to call in at the Barrow Hill Shed, to see what was to be seen.. In the first 22 pictures in the video, taken during the normal Shed opening times on the Saturday morning, a series of traction can be seen, and in order this is-

* BR class 40, D212/40012 'Aureol', Works No. 2669/D429, built by The English Electric Company Ltd & The Vulcan Foundry Ltd

* EWS class 37, 37521 & class 08, 08685 plus others behind these two which were not noted

* a line of 5 or more DRS class 20s, numbers unreadable from the angle taken, tut tut, no notebook!

* D5054/24054 'Phil Southern', built in 1959 by British Railways at Crewe Works with Power Unit, Sulzer 6LDA28, see-

www.elrdiesel.info/fleet-24054.php

* D4092, 'Christine', a class 10 0-6-0, diesel shunting locomotive built at Darlington in 1962.

* class 45, 45060, 'Sherwood Forester, more details here-

pioneer-diesels.co.uk/blog/?tag=45060

* Some Harry Needle class 20s with a grey diesel shunter in the foreground

* IEMD 01 shunter

* class 20 GBRf, 20905

* Ruston Diesel Shunter, D2996, 07012, was at Scunthorpe Works, as stated on Wikipedia, but not any more/

* D5814 class 31, 31414, see-

www.brdw.co.uk/class31/class31-414.html

* E3035, class 83, 83012, English Electric/Vulcan Foundry Works numbers 2941/E277, built in July 1961, withdrawn in March 1989

* EWS class 08 shunter, 08685

* Virgin Trains, class 82, 82101

* GCR 506, 'Butler Henderson'

* BR Scot Rail class 37, 37403, 'Isle of Mull', earlier numbers were D6607 & 37307

and with two of the younger enthusiasts, Casper & Oscar, attempting to drive off with one of the diesel locomotives, Casper clearly watching the gauges as he eases the throttle open whilst Oscar engages 'primary drive'... Another BR shunter can be seen in front of 'Butler Henderson', on the form of class 03, 03066. With a few of the innards of Scott Rail 37403, 'Isle of Mull' on the platform at 'Roundhouse Halt' at the region's iconic and the UK's only surviving Roundhouse Locomotive Shed, coded 18D by the LMS and 41E by BR, time to move off to the festivities at the Staveley Canal Basin, in the 2nd part of the video.

 

* Staveley Canal Basin

Along with the pictures taken here during the afternoon festivities, which were very good, more information can be found relating to the Canal Trust and its partners from, The Chesterfield Canal Trust-

www.chesterfield-canal-trust.org.uk

along with the IWA, the Inland Waterways Association with the Water Recovery Group being part of the IWA-

www.waterways.org.uk/

 

The trust held its 2016 Canal Festival at the newly refurbished and just recently completed, Staveley Basin, over the weekend of the 28th-29th of May, now, last year. Fortunately the weather was with them and it turned out to be a very successful weekend, see-

chesterfield-canal-trust.org.uk/general-news/

 

These 2nd set of pictures in this 8.5 minute video, taking up over 6 minutes of the total time, shows the various activities going on at the Canal Basin, some of the attractions of which, I have to say, 'The Urban Gypsies' to my mind were the best. Shots of the various activities, the canal cruisers and folks generally having a good time on and off the water and finally a short excursion along the as yet unfinished section along to where the canal will go under the track-bed of the now denuded 'Seymour Branch line', the canal then following the route alongside the GCR's old London Extension line towards the Rother Valley Country Park. From there the canal will rise up the hill to the western portal of Norwood Tunnel where it will eventually join up with the end of the other section of the canal at Kiveton. For details of this end of the work and a view inside Norwood Tunnel, 164Mby, 10m 28sec, see-

www.rail.tightfitz.com/Video/Norwood_Tunnel_2016-conv.mp4

 

At present the Canal water flows out of the basin through the town lock and ends up running through a pipe, over-flowing into a rough catchment area where it is finally diverted back from whence it came; the River Rother. This is as far as the navigation goes at the present time and the 1st shot shows 'Seth Ellis', built by Soar Valley Steel Boasts Ltd, having come about and moored up just this side of the temporary dam wall, waiting for its return journey through the lock. Much of the space still looks like a building site but the Canal Trust had made a great effort to make the event safe and look good with plenty of folk about to ask for information.

There were boats a-plenty of one sort or another, cruisers, canoes and more traditional craft. An evening event was the 'Parade of the Illuminated Boats', an after-dark saunter down towards where the Staveley Iron & Chemical works used to be located, opposite Mill Green. More antics from the Urban Gypsies as they 'frolic' about the place and the odd partial view of the Morris Dancing brigade.

There are several interesting characters to see here and there around the lock side and just before the excavator operator, Mr. Oscar A. Aujla, takes the final shot, a look at the yet to be completed route along from the basin overflow to around the corner under Hall Lane and then on to where the canal used to pass under the railway line.

This line, took freight moves from the Midland Line, off to the left, across the canal here and on to Seymour Junction at Poolsbrook, where it branched, the north-east line, with another branch, Oxcroft Junction, to the Oxcroft coal depot at Mill Lane, passing through Clowne, Creswell, Langwith & Shirebrook, the latter with its own branch to the colliery at Thoresby, and then through to Mansfield and points south. The other branch line went south-east to the large pits at Markham & Bolsover, on the east side of the M1 motorway at right next; this once derelict space is now being developed for contemporary industrial use and there was talk of some of this being rail connected again ... but that looks to have come to nothing.

All the tracks from Poolsbrook along to Clowne, Oxcroft Colliery and Markham Colliery have now been lifted, some of it, unofficially, in addition, the signal box at Seymour Junction, still visible on the 1999 and 2007 Google Earth views, was burned down after 2007 and the site has now been cleared. The Canal Trust, I was told, was in negotiations with Network Rail regarding the canal passage under/across the Poolsbrook branch line trackbed, which can be seen towards the end of the video, and as I understand it, NR wanted to maintain the availability of the track bed for future use but this now appears not to be the case. If so it will mean the canal trust does not have to dig another, rather deep, lock to pass under the railway line, though in a way it would be good to keep the layout as it is with a new lock under the track-bed, just in case! but that's a lot of effort if trains are never to run along here again.

The views at the end show the aspect facing towards the canal basin and looking along the now denuded track-bed towards Seymour Junction with, at that time in May, a profusion of wild flowers growing at either side of the track with the canal bridge visible at lower right where the palisade fence, zigzags into the picture; hardly worth having it there anymore! There is a shot of the rusting footbridge over the track-bed the bridge now not really needed and who knows what its fate might be once the canal passes though here with its towpath.

Closer to the basin, on the walk back from the railway formation, a shot of the point at which the canal waters flow back down to the River Rother, the exit from the muddy canal bed being below the large rectangular structures which can be seen on the left in the picture.

Coming to the end of the walk back from the point at which the canal will take its course up along the GC's old London Extension trackbed from Staveley to Killamarsh, an end on view looking into the canal outlet on this side of the town lock, with two of the cruising barges moored up and the 'Ice Cream Man' doing a brisk trade. Finally, Mr. O.A Aujla takes charge of the mechanical digger for the final shots at the canal basin, the Waterway Recovery Group instructing him on how to manipulate a road cone into the air and deposit it somewhere else.

Finally, a look back at the scene along the Poolsbrook Branch from a similar location seen in the earlier shots today. The last two shots show the scene as it looked in February, 2014, just over two years before today's festivities. The 1st looks west, towards the canal basin, with not much in the way of the canal excavation having taken place at this time; though rainwater is accumulating in the course of the canal bed. The track-bed, though weeds are everywhere, is still in its original double-track form and it wouldn't have taken much effort at this stage to re-open this line. The 2nd, and last picture in the video, is the view looking in the opposite direction and south of east towards Poolsbrook and Seymour Junction and again, the lines are in reasonably good condition and could be brought back to life for container use along to the land once occupied by the Markham and Bolsover Collieries; now sadly, it seems, not to be.

 

Here endeth this 'End-of-Year' piece, though there is another part to follow next in relation to developments with the route of the HS2, and I hope it provides some enjoyment and viewers feel its worth down-loading and taking a look. A very Happy and Prosperous, and hopefully less turbulent, New Year to one and all. Many thanks for your continued interest, remarks, additional information and other comments over last year, I appreciate it all...

Uses: Anything relating to finance and money.

 

Free Creative Commons Finance Images... I created these images in my studio and have made them all available for personal or commercial use. Hope you like them and find them useful.

 

To see more of our CC by 2.0 finance images click here... see profile for attribution.

Blog relating to this story .... peterjemmett.blogspot.com/2019/10/heart-attack-to-10k-par...

Tradition relates that it was St. James the Apostle who came to Spain to spread the Gospel. January 2nd, forty years following the birth of Our Saviour, says the legend, St. James was already in Saragossa, walking along the Ebro River with seven of his disciples whom he had chosen to help him to teach the faith.

 

While St. James walked with his brethren along the Ebro River and talked to them, Our Lady, then still on this earth, was in Jerusalem. She prayed ardently to her Son for the success of the mission of St. James because she knew about the great venture. And, as Mary prayed with much fervor, Jesus appeared to her and promised help to St. James. At the same time, He told His Mother that angels would take her to Spain to encourage the Apostle. And immediately the seraphs carried Our Lady through the skies over the Mediterranean to Saragossa where James the Apostle was kneeling at the banks of the Ebro. He suddenly saw a radiant light and then his ears were filled with heavenly music. All the disciples shared with him the beautiful vision. Mary appeared to them seated on a throne, borne by angels and while James the Apostle and the disciples gazed up at her, she smilingly told him that she had come to help. She then asked that a church be erected on the spot. And as evidence of her appearance, Our Lady took from the hands of one of the angels at her service a small column of jasper upon which there was placed a beautiful small statue of herself, carved in wood.

 

Then the apparition faded out.

 

The pillar with the statue, however, remained there in Saragossa and this is the statue of Our Lady of the Pillar venerated ever since in that Spanish city.

 

St. James succeeded in his mission though he died the death of a martyr. His earthly remnants are buried in the city of Santiago de Compostela and he is considered the patron saint of Spain.

 

Very soon after the vision accorded to St. James and the disciples, a modest chapel was built as Our Lady had requested. This chapel was eventually destroyed and many other churches and chapels shared the same fate; the pillar with the statue, however, remained intact. It is a fact that Romans, Goths, Moors, Vandals and other invaders could never desecrate or destroy the statue itself because the people of Saragossa defended it with fierce heroism. All the kings of Spain, many other foreign rulers and saints have paid their devotion before this statue of Mary. St. John of the Cross, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Ignatius of Loyola are among the most outstanding ones. The present church was built in 1686 by Charles II, King of Spain.

 

"The sentiment of the Saragossans toward their beloved Virgen del Pilar is far different from the ordinary devotion paid to a favorite saint. It is an inheritance from their forefathers, a love that is born with them, and ends only with their lives. It is interwoven with their patriotism, with their nationality, with their home life, and with their daily tasks and amusements… In their talks, she is the ever-recurrent theme, and in their patriotic songs, they acclaim her as the leader of their nation. Saragossans say that the church of the Virgen del Pilar was the first raised in her honor and will last as long as the faith."

Jesus can relate to you and me. His life was full of immense suffering so he understands intimately what we go through every day.

 

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Okay, lookit, I bought this card at Metrolina before or after the events I'm relating, and I'm more interested in telling my story than I am in the card. I mean, to everything[s] a season, right? I'm pretty sure this is Bunny Yeager, though whether she took the photograph or someone else did I don't know. She has some assets. I'd like to drive down to Miami and meet her. Even now. But back to our story [If you haven't read the story up to now, go back one photo to the picture of the woman in the white dress. That's where the story started.]

 

At some point during the day of the encounter with the cranky dealer, I was looking at my New York Times for Friday, November 5th. I usually look at the arts section first, and I happened to see an article about, what else, glass lantern slides. Museums are digging them out of their basements and dusting them off and putting them on exhibit. So here's this article on the day when I first considered buying a glass lantern slide. It was like God was talking to me.

 

So that night, in bed (I do a lot of thinking in bed, alas) I thought about the glass lantern slide. It had, how do I say this, mrwaterslide written all over it. Its subject was pretty much total mrwaterslide + a whole lot of johnny (mrwaterslide's cohabitor). It was romantic, and it was a tad kinky, it was unusual, it was shocking (a bit), it was naughty (a bit, well, sort of like foreplay). In short, mrwaterslide realized that he had to have the glass lantern slide. It was him and he was it. God had indeed spoken directly.

 

Problem was, I had alienated the dealer, and there was no way he was going to sell me that glass lantern slide. He might even jack up the price, and try to sell it to me for $200 or something outrageous. I had offended him. How to get the lantern slide?

 

I came up with a plan.

 

The next day, about noon, I got out to Metrolina again. They sell you one ticket that's good for the whole week. The price used to be higher, but they got thrown for a loop when the show fragmented. I went right over to the concrete pad with the metal roof over it. At the front of this space, there is another dealer who has been there a long time. He's a nice guy, and he has a sense of humor, and I've bought from him before.

 

So I told the nice antiques dealer my story about the cranky antiques dealer, and how I had alienated him and now he wouldn't sell me anything, and I told him about the glass lantern slide, and how I had decided that I had to have it. The nice antiques dealer had never heard of a glass lantern slide. He was afraid he wouldn't be able to recognize it. But I told him the subject matter of the glass lantern slide, and explained that there was no way he could mistake it for something else. I asked the nice antiques dealer if he would go buy the slide for me, and he said he would. I gave him $50, which was the price the cranky guy said he wanted for the lantern slide. I was going to stay in the booth of the nice antiques dealer and watch his stuff while he was gone. The other dealer was only like thirty or forty yards away, but there were a number of dealers intervening, and no chance that Cranky Guy would catch on.

 

The nice antiques dealer was gone for maybe six or eight minutes. I told him not to just go in there and ask to see the glass lantern slide. He needed to be a guy looking for photographs, and then the Cranky Dealer Guy would get excited, and show him the glass lantern slide. This is what the Cranky Dealer Guy did with me, before I insulted him and alienated him and he became abusive.

 

So after the minutes have passed, I see the dealer fellow, the nice guy, returning to his set-up. He has the look of a man who has successfully completed his mission. I can see something that looks like the glass lantern slide in one hand, and he has some cash in the other hand. [To Be Continued]

  

Midori is releasing a series of new products relating to the popular Traveler's Notebook. In an attempt to create the same aesthetic of the leather notebook, the development team chose to use brass as the material which radiates the same pleasing quality as it ages. I think it is an excellent choice of material, it gives you the feeling of a trusted old friend, give it a little polishing it comes back to a shiny companion.

 

The brass series includes 12 pieces of numbered clips, a 15cm ruler with raised edge for easy pick up, a solid brass pen case and bullet pen/pencils. These bullet pen/pencils are available in white or brown barrels in addition to the brass ones. The pens have a ring at one end for strap add-on while the pencils have a large eraser instead.

 

During the Midori private show I visited, I learned that they are preparing for a "Traveler's notebook & company" exhibition to be held in Spiral Market again this year around March/April. I am glad to be invited to contribute some contents for their on-site newsletter in "what's in my bag" style.

 

The large size Traveler's Notebook is far more popular than the passport size they released last year. To promote the use of the passport size Traveler's Notebook, which can be used as an actual passport jacket with note keeping capability and kept close to your body, Midori is releasing more add-ons such as new refills, rub-on letters and 2 limited edition refills which looks like a real passport. In the limited edition refill package, they thoughtfully included rub-on letters in passport looking font so you can personalize the notebook on the last page like it is a real thing.

 

Finally, since document envelope with string closure is very difficult to find in Japan, "Kraft envelopes" are created. It gives a crafty way to store your receipts or coasters collected from travels, either use them individually or make them handy by taping them on the notebook refill cover.

 

Here's my 2 cents about material use. I love the brass application on the hardware (pen case, clip, pen and ruler), while Midori is proud of its range of high quality paper products, application of tougher material on the notebook covers or even envelopes and document holders will add similar aesthetic and durability to this overlooked area. I would recommend to use jean label material in the form of cellulose fibre in combination of leather and paper to create a new range of pleasing products under the Traveler's Notebook collection.

 

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Alfred B Bales……………………………….......49 Canadian Batt

 

Name: BALES Initials: A B

Rank: Private Regiment: Canadian Infantry (Alberta Regiment) Unit Text: 49th Bn.

Date of Death: 07/04/1916 Service No: 436662

Grave/Memorial Reference: I. A. 22. Cemetery: MENIN ROAD SOUTH MILITARY CEMETERY

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=95745

 

There is a picture of Private Alfred Benjamin Bales on Norlink

norlink.norfolk.gov.uk/02_Catalogue/02_013_PictureTitleIn...

 

The accompanying notes read

Private Bales was born at Norwich, 21st October 1892 and was educated at the Model and Municipal Secondary School. He enlisted in December 1914 and was killed in action at Ypres, 7th April 1916.

 

The 8 year Alfred appears on the 1901 Census at 19 Magdalen Street in the Parish of St Clements. This is the household of his parents, Ernest William, (aged 37 and a Saddle & Harness Maker and Leather Dealer from Norwich), and Anna Maria, (aged 39 and from Morwich). Their other children are:-

Anna Maud……………aged 12.………………born Norwich

Ernest William…………aged 11.………………born Norwich

 

Alfred Benjamin was baptised at St Clements on the 22nd December 1899. His birth date is simply given as 1882. Parents are Ernest William, a Saddler and Anna Maria. The family are living at Magdalen Street.

Alfred also appears on the NORWICH CATHEDRAL - BOYS MODEL SCHOOL WAR MEMORIAL

www.roll-of-honour.com/Norfolk/NorwichBoysModelSchool.html

 

The enlistment papers for Private Alfred Benjamin Bales can be seen on line here:-

www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/cef/001042-119.02-e...

www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/cef/001042-119.02-e...

 

They confirm he was born Norwich, but gives date of birth as the 18th October 1892. He gives his next of kin as E Wm Bales residing at 17 Magdalen Street. He was single and gave his occupation as farmer, (plus an undecipherable word). He had no previous military experience. At the time of his medical examination on the 25th January 1915 he was 22 years and three months, stood 5 foot 7 inches tall, with light brown hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion.

 

It was the 31st Battalion that was the Albert Regiment. The 49th was the Edmonton Regiment. The battalion has no Battle Honours relating to the period of Alfred’s death.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_infantry_battalions_in_the_...

 

The 49th was in action at the St Eloi craters at this time, in one of the many pointless actions of the war based on the poor quality of the Army high command.

 

From Chapter 5 of the Nicholson Matrix, there is a description of the action, though no specific reference to the 49th but there is to the 31st .

 

Throughout 4 and 5 April the whole of the Canadian front line came under almost continual bombardment. The intensity of the German fire was described by a British artillery officer who had been in the Ypres Salient for the past year as far greater than any he had hitherto experienced.39 Both battalion sectors were hard hit, and 200 yards of trench in the 27th Battalion’s area were completely demolished. The destruction of the sandbag parapet in one of the 31st Battalion’s trenches exposed the Canadians to enfilade machine-gun fire from position 85 as well as to sniping from the German lines, only 150 yards away. Although each man dug his own slit trench in the mud, casualties mounted rapidly. By noon on the 4th every second man in one of the 27th’s forward companies had been hit. The battalion commander, Lt.-Col. I. R. Snider, was forced to thin out his front line, leaving in front of the craters only bombing parties supplied by battalions of the 5th Brigade and four Lewis gun detachments from the 5th Brigade Machine Gun Company. He had no contact with the 31st Battalion on his left. On the evening of 5 April small parties from the 28th Battalion were sent out to station themselves in the four big craters and act as snipers and observers until these could be trenched and garrisoned. There is doubt that the positions which they occupied were actually the designated craters. Later that same night the 29th Battalion began relieving the badly depleted forward companies of the 27th Battalion.40

 

This relief dragged out interminably. The incoming troops, burdened with extra equipment, had to struggle forward in a long line through the mud and congestion of the same narrow communication trench that was being used by pioneers moving up to work on the craters and by other parties coming to the rear, many of them wounded. The exchange was still in progress when at 3:30 a.m. on the 6th, following an intense barrage, the Germans attacked with two battalions* astride the road which ran from St. Eloi south-eastward to Warneton and before its destruction had passed between the sites of the 3rd and 4th craters. Effective resistance was impossible. West of the road the two relieving companies were not yet in position, having failed to find the positions manned by the 5th Brigade. They could do little more than deflect the tide of the German attack eastward, where it quickly wiped out the machine-gun posts and flowed through the resulting gap in front of the central craters. The eastern wing of the assault was held up momentarily by crossfire from the 31st Battalion’s machine-guns, which also repelled attacks against Craters 6 and 7 and the line to the east. Artillery fire on the enemy’s lines of approach by all available British field guns failed to stop the attackers, some of whom got through by splitting into small groups. The Germans quickly secured Craters 2 and 3 and from these points of vantage soon spread into Craters 4 and 5. In less than three hours the enemy had regained all the ground taken from him between 27 March and 3 April. 41

 

The Canadians launched local counter-attacks with the minimum of delay. The only feasible way to regain the craters seemed to be by bombing, but the element of surprise was missing and the efforts accomplished nothing. On the right bombers of the 27th and 29th Battalions attempting to reoccupy Craters 2 and 3 were caught in the mire and shot down before they could get close enough to fling their grenades. On the left Brig.-Gen. Ketchen ordered the 31st Battalion, reinforced with a detachment from the 28th, to retake Craters 4 and 5. But their unfamiliarity with the ground and the complete absence of recognizable landmarks caused the attackers to repeat the mistake made by British troops ten days earlier. Forced to make their approach from the side, they lost direction and occupied Craters 6 and 7, reporting that they had regained 4 and 5. German shellfire during the remainder of 6 April and on succeeding days isolated the two craters that the Canadians were holding, so that no reconnoitring officer could reach them in daylight. Because of bad weather no air photograph of the positions was taken from the 8th until the 16th. The mistake was to persist throughout that entire period.†42 The occupants of the two craters could see on their right the high edge of what they believed to be Crater 3 (The Mound), but which was in reality No. 5. On the night of 6-7 April the 28th Battalion sent out 75 bombers, supported by two companies, to regain this objective. Enemy shellfire and heavy rain held them up. Losing their way in the darkness they occupied a group of craters north of No. 4, and there captured several small German patrols. They had failed to attain their objective, or even identify it correctly. During the night the 4th Canadian Brigade (Brig.-Gen. R. Rennie) relieved the 6th Brigade, which had suffered 617 casualties in its four days of fighting.43 For the next week confusion was to persist with respect to the exact positions held by the Canadians.

cefresearch.com/matrix/Nicholson/Transcription/

 

Background to the creation of the battalion is here

www.lermuseum.org/ler/rh/ch1_page05.html

The same source has no mention of the 49th being involved in the St Eloi action

www.lermuseum.org/ler/rh/ch2_page03.html

 

Mack Billin,……………………………..............14th Essex Regiment

 

Name: BILLIN, MACK

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Essex Regiment Unit Text: 13th Bn.

Date of Death: 13/11/1916 Service No: 28341

Grave/Memorial Reference: Pier and Face 10 D. Memorial: THIEPVAL MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=768669

(Note - different Battalion)

No match on Norlink

 

The 6 year old Mack is recorded at 10 New Yard in the Parish of St Pauls. This is the household of his parents, Mark, (aged 36 and a Shoemaker from Norwich), ans Alice, (aged 29 and from Norwich). Their other children are:-

Alice…………………….aged 8.………………….born Norwich

Herbert………………….aged 5.………………….born Norwich

Lily………………………aged 7 months…………born Norwich

Walter……………………aged 7 months…………born Norwich

 

Monday 13th November 1916. Day 136

 

The Battle of the Ancre, the final battle of the Somme Campaign began today.

 

13th Essex (Part of 6 Brigade) - Redan Ridge

 

2nd Div attacked Redan Ridge north of Beaumont Hamel with 6 Bde on the left and 5 Bde on the right. 99 Bde was in reserve. 5 Bde formed up in No Man’s Land and, staying close to the creeping barrage, took the German front line with little difficulty. 2nd Bn, Highland Light Infantry and 24th Royal Fusiliers pressed on to Beaumont Trench. The Fusiliers blocked the trench because 6 Bde’s advance had fallen behind. They fought off some German bombing attacks.

 

6 Bde had real problems. Fog and mud slowed the advance as did fire from the Quadrilateral. Added to which the German wire was intact. Troops from the brigade’s four battalions entered the German trenches where they were pinned down by MG fire.

 

By 7.30 am only 5 Bde was ready to move on to the second objective, Frankfurt Trench. Only a few men reached this objective and soon withdrew. Also at 7.30am 99 Bde began to move forward to support the attack but orders for an advance by the brigade were cancelled and 2nd Div began to consolidate on it’s captured trenches. 6 Bde was withdrawn to re-org.

forum.irishmilitaryonline.com/showthread.php?t=9058&p...

 

14th (Reserve) Battalion

Formed at Brentwood in September 1915 from depot companies of 13th Bn.

Moved to Northampton in January 1916 and went on in the May to Aldershot.

1 September 1916 : converted into 98th Training Reserve Battalion of 23rd Reserve Brigade at Aldershot.

www.1914-1918.net/essex.htm

 

I suspect therefore Private Billin fell in the company of many from the 13th Essex, rather than the 14th Essex as shown on the church roll of honour as that unit never made it to france and had already effectively ceased to exist.

 

William Chilvers………………………………...1st Norfolks

 

Name: CHILVERS, WILLIAM

Rank: Lance Corporal Regiment/Service: Norfolk Regiment Unit Text: 1st Bn.

Age: 37 Date of Death: 31/07/1916 Service No: 3/10187

Additional information: Son of Mr. and Mrs. Chilvers, of Garden House, Newton, St. Faith's, Norwich; husband of Anna Elizabeth Gray (formerly Chilvers), of 12, Thoroughfare Yard, Magdalen St., Norwich.

Grave/Memorial Reference: Pier and Face 1 C and 1 D. Memorial: THIEPVAL MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=760002

 

No match on Norlink

 

No obvious match on the 1911 or 1901 census However on the 1911 census there is a William born circa 1857 in Norwich now recorded in St Faiths district.

 

On the 1891 census that William is living at 52 Albany Road in the Parish of St Clements and is a Brush Finisher by trade. His wife is Amelia, aged 33 and a General Shop-keeper from Norwich. The eldest of their children is our man, “Willy”, aged 12 and born Norwich. Their other children are:-

Maud…………….aged 9.………………born Norwich

George…………..aged 8.……………….born Norwich

May……………aged 6.…………………born Norwich

Amelia…………aged 3.…………………born Norwich

Henry…………..aged 1.…………………born Norwich.

 

The Chilvers also have a lodger living with them, Harriet Harwood, (aged 25 and a Boot Machinist from Norwich), and her one year old daughter, Rosa.

 

On the 1901 census the family have moved to 69 Spencer Street in the Parish of St James with Pockthorpe. “Willie” has moved out, not surprisingly really as the family has grown to include

Nellie………….aged 9.…………………born Norwich

Laura………….aged 7.………………….born Norwich

Fred……………aged 6.…………………born Norwich

Edith V…………aged u/1.………………born Norwich

 

I initially found a baptismal record for a William Chilvers, but in the light of the above this is possibly the right person, its just that the dates don’t tie up. A William Chilvers, son of a William (Brush Finisher by occupation) and Amelia, took place at St Stephens, Norwich on 27th January 1879, and his birth date was given as 11th August 1877, which does not marry up to any of the other dates above. The family were living at Butcher’s Court, St Stephens.

 

I believe William’s brother Henry is recorded on the St Faiths War Memorial, which ties in with the family location in 1911

www.flickr.com/photos/43688219@N00/2871580378/

 

The 1st Norfolks were relieving a fellow Brigade Unit, the 1st Bedfords, on the day that Private Chilvers died.

 

31st July 1916

 

OPERATION ORDERS NO.7 1/BEDFORDSHIRE RGT. Ref. Sheet LONGUEVAL 31st July 1916

1. The Battn. will be relieved at dark by 1/NORFOLK Rgt.

2. On Relief Battn. will withdraw to area East of Church, where they will get into SLIT Trenches they dug on arrival in LONGUEVAL last night.

3. O.C. Coys. will report their arrival in this area to Battn. H.Q.

4. O.C. Coys. will send one guide each to Bn.H.Q. at once to guide NORFOLK coys up.

5. Later (about 11 p.m.) the 1/CHESHIRE RGT. will arrive in the area.

6. On arrival of 1/CHESHIRE Rgt, coys will withdraw independently to POMMIERS Redoubt, without being relieved.

7. O.C. Coys. will report the final departure of their coys to Bn.H.Q.

Report on Operations 30 July - 1st August 1916. REF. Sheet LONGUEVAL 1/BEDFORDSHIRE RGT 30.7.'16 6.45 P.M.

Orders received to reinforce in LONGUEVAL 2/K.O.S.B. holding Line. 1/R.W.Kents in support. Leading platoon moved off at 6.53 p.m. and reached LONGUEVAL at 7.45 p.m. relieving 1/R.W.KENTS 10.12 p.m. O.C. 2/K.O.S.B. reported that his men were retiring from Line S.11.d.9/5 to S.11.c.5/8. A & C Coys were directed to proceed with guides of K.O.S.B. to hold & consolidate this line. B & D Coys were directed to hold line S.11.d.9/5 to S.17.b.0/9. It was proposed to withdraw K.O.S.B. into reserve at dawn. 11.45 p.m. Message received by O.C. K.O.S.B. that GORDONS 51st DIVISION were in Sunken Road & that K.O.S.B. were to bomb towards them. 31.7.'16 12.10 A.M. Enemy started intense bombardment 12.45 A.M. Orderly returned from A & C Coys & reported K.O.S.B. Guides could not show them the way up to front line. O.C. A & C Coys were instructed to establish themselves on the Line B.C.D.E. (S.11.d.4/8 to S.11.c.5.5) & to send out patrols to ascertain if any K.O.S.B. were holding forward line. 2.30 A.M. All Coys reported heavy casualties [2 officers Killed & several wounded]. B & D Coys reported themselves to be in position as ordered from S.11.d.5/5 to S.11.b.0/9. Two wounded prisoners were taken by 'A' Coy. Reinforcements had been asked for at 10.54 A.M. O.C. D Coy reported that he had been able to get in touch with Division on right. O.C. C Coy reported that owing to mist darkness & shell fire it was impossible to recognise the line B.C.D.E, that he was in touch with K.O.S.B. & would establish himself in the forward position at dawn. Telephone communication established between Bn. H.Q. & front line 6.25 A.M. Order received from Bde to relieve K.O.S.B. who were to move into reserve. O.C. C.Coy. reported by Telephone that his patrols were unable to get forward. Two Machine Guns enfilading NORTH STREET & heavy sniping from his front. Companies were now as follows: - D.Coy from PICCADILLY to NORTH ST. on DUKE ST. B.Coy. continuing this line into DELVILLE WOOD. A.Coy. crossroads NORTH ST./FLERS RD. to ORCHARD. C.Coy. in support of A.Coy. with refused flank about S.11.d.8/3 & two platoons North of FLERS Rd. about S.11.d.4/4. C.Coy. were still endeavouring to gain touch with 2nd Divn. The position taken up could be seen from the opposite ridge & any movement attracted heavy shell fire. There was also considerable sniping from the direction of FLERS Rd. 6.0. P.M. 1/NORFOLK RGT. arrived and relieved 2/K.O.S.B. and the forward BEDF. coys, who were moved back to reserve position E. of Church. 10.30 P.M. 1/CHESHIRE RGT. arrived & relief of 1/BEDF. R. was completed by Midnight. 1/BEDF. R. returned to POMMIERS REDOUBT. 11 P.M. A patrol from C.Coy. trying to get into touch with 2nd Division approached the German line in NORTH of DELVILLE WOOD & attracted a big burst of fire.

Source www.bedfordregiment.org.uk/1stbn/1stbtn1916appendices.html

 

William John Chilvers………………………… .1st Rifle Brigade

 

Name: CHILVERS Initials: W J

Rank: Rifleman Regiment/Service: Rifle Brigade Unit Text: 1st Bn.

Date of Death: 29/03/1918 Service No: S/37032

Grave/Memorial Reference: I. J. 17. Cemetery: POINT-DU-JOUR MILITARY CEMETERY, ATHIES

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=257132

 

The index to the Great War Roll of Honour confirms that Rifleman Chilvers was a William J.

 

No match on Norlink

 

There is a William John born circa 1899 in Norwich and now recorded in the district of Forehoe on the 1911 census, but otherwise there are plenty of William’s from Norwich and of the right sort of age. This individual, aged 2, is recorded at 99, Norfolk Street, in the Parish of St Stephens. This is the household of his parents, John Rackham, (aged 50 and a Gardener from Morton, Norfolk), and Anna Chilvers, (aged 23 and from Norwich)

 

Divisional Battle Honour

First Battle of Arras. 28 Mar 1918

 

At 3am on Thursday 28 March the early morning stillness was shattered by the chaotic din of a terrific German bombardment. Shortly after 7am German infantry attacked. Unaided by fog and, in places, going forward in mass formations, they met with devastating fire from British artillery and well-sited machine guns.

South of the Scarpe German infiltrations via communication trenches forced 3rd and 15th Divisions back from their front lines by 8.30am; gradual withdrawals were made to the rear of the Battle Zone; despite great pressure no effective breakthroughs were made. The greatest German efforts were made north of the Scarpe: attacking across difficult ground enemy infantry successfully progressed up the valley between 4th and 56th Division positions forcing British fighting withdrawals to the Battle Zone; despite repeated attacks the line held.

www.cwgc.org/spring1918/content.asp?menuid=34&submenu...

 

Charles Goulder………………………………....1st Norfolks

 

Name: GOULDER, CHARLES

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Norfolk Regiment Unit Text: 1st Bn.

Age: 35 Date of Death: 27/07/1916 Service No: 3/8037

Additional information: Son of Henry and Sophia Goulder, of 49, Fishergate St., Norwich; husband of Sarah Goulder, of I, Tiger Yard, Fishergate St., Norwich.

Grave/Memorial Reference: Pier and Face 1 C and 1 D. Memorial: THIEPVAL MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=786634

 

No match on Norlink

 

The 23 year old Charles , a Shoe Finisher from Norwich, is recorded on the 1901 Census at 49 Fishergate Street in the Parish of St Edmund. This is the household of his Step-father, William Eames, a 63 year old Tailor and Licensed Victualler from Bedford, and mother, Sophia Eames, (aged 53 and a Publican from Norwich). Making up the household is Charles brother John H Y Goulder, aged 26, and like his brother, a shoe finisher from Norwich.

 

Charles isn’t obviously on the 1891 Census., but on the 1881 one the “40” year old Sophia Goulder is a widow, living at what looks like Little Bull Close in the Parish of St Paul, with no occupation, and head of a household of 8, of which Charles is the youngest. Sophia also seems to be absent from the Genes Re-united transcription of the 1891 census, both as a Goulder and as an Eames.

 

Charles was baptised in the church of St Simon and St Jude on the 5th February 1878. His birth date was shown as the 26th December 1877. His father is listed as John Henry, a Labourer, and his mother is Sophia. They are listed simply as residing in the Parish of St Pauls.

 

Note none of these dates and ages from the Census & Baptismal record tie in with him being 35 in 1916, so I guessed he must have lied about his age.

 

Thursday 27th July 1916. Day 27

 

Delville Wood

 

At 7.10am after a one hour barrage on Delville Wood the 1st Bn, KRRC and 23rd Bn, Royal Fusiliers of 99 Bde, 2nd Div began their advance from the south. By 9am they had occupied a line 50 yards from the northern edge of the wood. At 9.30am a German attack forced back the right side of the line slightly so that it ran just east of King St.

 

In conjunction with 2nd Div, 1st Norfolk Regt and 1st Bedfordshire Regt of 15 Bde, 5th Div attacked the west end of the wood and Longueval village. The Bedfords linked up with 2nd Div in the northern end of the wood. Longueval was occupied almost as far as Duke Street

 

That night 17th Middlesex and 2nd South Staffords (6 Bde) relieved 99 Bde. 95 Bde relieved 15 Bde.

Source forum.irishmilitaryonline.com/showthread.php?t=9058&p...

 

REPORT ON OPERATIONS 26/28 JULY 1/BEDFORDSHIRE Rgt 26.7.'16 11.15.P.M.

The Battalion left its Bivouac POMMIERS REDOUBT and marched to Brigade Advanced H.Q. Here owing to very heavy Barrage & poison Gas shells in the Valley the Battalion halted for two hours. The Barrage was still intense but a fresh wind made advance possible & only two cases of gas poisoning have been reported. Shell fire was moderately severe in the valley and increased as the old German Second line Trenches were approached. 27.7.'16 [Capt. PARKER wounded] 3.50 A.M. Battn arrived in position of assembly in German 2nd Line Trenches and improved cover 5.30 A.M. Operation Orders received & communicated to Company Commanders. 7.0 A.M. A & B Coys in accordance with orders, left to take up their position in Reserve trenches at LONGUEVAL. 7.40 A.M. Report received from O.C. 1/NORFOLKS that owing to heavy shell fire, he required assistance 8.20 A.M. OC 1/BEDFORDSHIRE Rgt arrived at H.Q. 1/NORFOLK Rgt in LONGUEVAL having arranged for A & B Coys to assault the second line in conjunction with NORFOLKS & for C & D Coys to pass through & take third line. O.C. 16/ROYAL WARWICKSHIRE Rgt was requested to occupy front line trenches when these were vacated by C & D Coys. A & B Coys had at 7.30 A.M. occupied first line at 'E' & reserve trenches at 'B'. 9.00 A.M. C Coy arrived at E D Coy arrived at B and A Coy pushed across towards German Redoubt at F where the two leading NORFOLK Coys were being held up [100 prisoners surrendered here] Lt. FYSON with his platoon attacked house at G and took 32 prisoners. 9.5 A.M. C Coy advanced across PRINCES Street but were held up by Machine Gun fire from House at Cross Roads (I). This house was taken by a party of NORFOLK bombers. At the same time, two platoons of A Coy reached position marked H & K near FLERS Road where they were in touch in [sic] the ROYAL FUSILIERS on their right. A German counterattack was met with LEWIS Gun & Rifle fire, the estimated Enemy Casualties being 50. Several small posts were observed on the Ridge, apparently protected by wire. 9.30 A.M. C Coy crossed PRINCES STREET and took up a position parallel with NORTH Street joining up the two leading NORFOLK coys. They were unable to progress further owing to heavy Machine Gun fire from DUKE Street. They consolidated their position. 1 Officer & 30 men went forward from B Coy at C to reinforce a Coy of NORFOLKS at A. This coy was held up by Machine Gun fire from direction of DUKE Street & was unable to advance. STOKES Mortar Battery was asked to cooperate, but did not come into action. Later, heavy Artillery was asked to bombard this post. While awaiting this & the opportunity to advance, B & D Coys endeavoured to improve their cover under a hurricane bombardment.

 

6.30 P.M. ROYAL FUSILIERS on right, owing to heavy shell fire, retired and out line at K & H was slightly withdrawn to cover exposed flank. 7.0 P.M. B Coy received orders to retire to German Second Line trenches, leaving one platoon to hold line at A. A similar order was sent to D Coy but did not reach there and a second order was sent at 8.0 P.M. 9.0 P.M. C Coy tried to establish itself on East side of NORTH ST. but had to withdraw. They consolidated in touch with NORFOLKS & the SOUTH STAFFORDS of 2nd Division 28.7.'16 6 A.M. 1/D.C.L.I. & 1/E.SURREYS arrived & took over the line & the Battalion withdrew to POMMIERS Redoubt.

 

15th Infy. Bde. 1st Bedfords

The Brigadier-General Commanding wishes to express to all ranks of the Brigade his great admiration at the magnificent manner in which they captured the Village of LONGUEVAL yesterday. To the 1st NORFOLK Regiment and the 1st BEDFORDSHIRE Regiment and some of the 16th ROYAL WARWICKSHIRE Regiment, who were able to get into the enemy with the bayonet, he offers his heartiest congratulations. He knows it is what they have been waiting and wishing for many months. The 1st CHESHIRE Regiment made a most gallant and determined effort to reach their objective and failed through no fault of their own. The way in which the Troops behaved under the subsequent heavy bombardment was worthy of the best traditions of the British Army The Brigade captured 4 Officers and 159 other ranks 28/7/1916

Source www.bedfordregiment.org.uk/1stbn/1stbtn1916appendices.html

  

Walter Green………………………………........1st Norfolks

 

Name: GREEN, WALTER

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Norfolk Regiment Unit Text: "B" Coy. 2nd Bn. Age: 33 Date of Death: 09/12/1915 Service No: 3/10638

Additional information: Son of Osborne Green, of Norwich; husband of Alice Maud Campbell (formerly Green), of 6, Peacock St., Norwich.

Memorial: DOIRAN MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=1649433

 

Note - different Battalion.

 

No match on Norlink

 

The 18 year old Walter, a Printers Labourer from Norwich, is recorded on the 1901 census at 76 Silver Street, in the Parish of St James, Pockthorpe. This is the household of his brother-in-law, Jacob Sexton, (aged 31 and a Boot & Shoe Maker from Norwich.), and presumably his sister, Jacob’s wife, Rose Sexton, (aged 28 and from Norwich).. As well as four Sexton children, the household also contains Rose and Walter’s brother, Robert, (aged 21 and a Builder’s labourer from Norwich), and their father, Osborn Green, a 57 year old widowed Gas Works Labourer from Norwich.

 

On the 1891 census, the 47 year “Osborne” was already a Widower, although described there as an Engine Driver at a Gas Works. The address is difficult to decipher, but looks like 8, Harwardson’s Yard, in the Parish of St Paul.

 

Walter appears to have been baptised in the church of St James with Pockthorpe on the 15th March 1885. His birth date is given as 23rd July 1882. His parents are shown as “Osmond” and Martha. The father’s occupation is shown as Labourer. The family live at “Stewardsons” Yard.

 

Note to self - I’m sure I’ve seen something like Hawardsons Yard down Magdalen Street - go and check.

 

Not quite sure how Private Green ended up being commemorated on the Doiran. His unit was besieged in Kut in Iraq at this time if he was a 2nd Battalion man, or in the trenches on the Somme if he was a 1st Battalion man.

 

Ernest Grimwood………………………………..7th Norfolks

 

Name: GRIMWOOD, ERNEST JAMES

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Norfolk Regiment Unit Text: 7th Bn.

Age: 18 Date of Death: 12/08/1916 Service No: 9675

Additional information: Son of Mrs. Annie Grimwood, of 5, Thoroughfare Yard, Magdalen St., Norwich.

Grave/Memorial Reference: Pier and Face 1 C and 1 D. Memorial: THIEPVAL MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=787840

 

Brother of Robert below

No match on Norlink

 

The 2 year old Ernest is recorded on the 1901 census at 15 Handford Cut, Ipswich. This is the household of his parents, William, (aged 31 and a Boot Machinist from Ipswich), and Annie, (aged 28 and from Ipswich). Their other children are:-

Annie…………………….aged 4.……………….born Ipswich

Horace…………………aged 7.…………………born Ipswich

Robert…………………..aged 6.…………………born Ipswich

William…………………aged 9.…………………born Ipswich

 

Neither Ernest or Robert appear to be on the 1911 Census.

 

Saturday 12th August 1916. Day 43

 

7th Norfolk Regt and 9th Essex Regt captured Skyline Trench.

forum.irishmilitaryonline.com/showthread.php?t=9058&p...

(It must subsequently have been re-taken by the Germans. As the Oxs and Bucks Light Infantry seem to have sustained heavy casualties “taking” Skyline trench on the 14th and holding it against the subsequent counter-attacks until relieved. The 1st/1st Bucks Regiment also seemes to have been engaged in an attack to take the Skyline Trench on the 14/15th August)

 

Robert Grimwood……………………………….8th Norfolks

 

Name: GRIMWOOD, ROBERT

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Norfolk Regiment Unit Text: 8th Bn.

Age: 20 Date of Death: 19/07/1916 Service No: 16154

Additional information: Son of Mrs Annie Grimwood, of 5, Thoroughfare Yard, Magdalen St., Norwich.

Grave/Memorial Reference: Pier and Face 1 C and 1 D. Memorial: THIEPVAL MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=787844

 

Brother of Ernest above

 

No match on Norlink

 

See Ernest above for census details

 

Wednesday 19th July 1916. Day 19

 

Delville Wood

 

Fighting continued in Delville Wood all day. 53 Bde (18th Div) had been sent to reinforce 9th Div. 8th Norfolks attacked from south west of Longueval at 7am and occupied the southern part of Delville Wood. The 10th Essex, 6th Royal Berkshire Regt and 8th Suffolks were sent to the attack with little success.

Source forum.irishmilitaryonline.com/showthread.php?t=9058

 

6th Royal Berkshire War Diary for the day

3.30AM - Bn arrived at S22d Valley. CO rejoined with orders which were read and explained. Bn ready to move off at 4AM.

5.14 - Norfolks report Zero time to be 6.15AM.

5.40 - Norfolks commence to move off towards LONGUEVAL which was over a mile off. Enemy shell road to LONGUEVAL with field guns. Long halts cause delay and congestion in road.

7.5 - No 13 Platoon D Coy Berks moves off as leading platoon of the Bn. Enemy shelling road heavily with guns of all calibre. Many casualties from shell fire. Norfolks not yet attacked though barrage lifted.

9.0 - Entrance to village reached.

9.49 - B9 stating Barrage will lift at 11AM received.

10.50 - BM12 " " " " 11AM by 50 yards a minute received.

11.40 - Norfolks report S portion of wood clear. Battn starts to move on to wood.

11.55 - Bn in position in S portion of wood and in touch with Essex on right but very weak owing to heavy losses from shell fire. MG opened fire on to the leading platoons of D Coy from the NW corner of the Southern half of wood. This gun had not been reported by Norfolks.

NOON - CO arranged for rebombardment to start at 1pm for 30 minutes and for assault to take place after.

1pm - Heavies falling short among our own men. Shrapnel bursting short.

1.30pm - Barrage lifted. It was impossible to tell that a bombardment was on as the rate of fire was so slow and Coys had to be informed that it was time to attack. Germans brought heavy barrage on PRINCES ST line and opened with MGs on advancing troops. D Coy unable to advance owing to MG from a house somewhere on their left. C & B advanced about 150yds but suffered heavy casualties and were finally forced to drop back to the lines PRINCES ST where they started to dig in.

1.50 - Owing to heavy fire on working parties AC & B Coys forced to retire to original line - about 80 yds S of PRINCES ST.

2.15 - Coys ordered to consolidate on the line they hold. Bde calls for situation - reported verbally see back of message B729.

2,36 - Situation explained to Suffolks and Stokes Gun asked for but not received.

3.5 - Situation explained to Bde. MGs sent into the line proposed to hold. 4 guns under 2Lt Gilbert.

3.37 - Situation sent to Bde - work of consolidation of the line 120yds S of PRINCES ST complete. Efforts being made to deepen the line 40yds S of PRINCES ST.

4.10 - Preparations complete for further effort to advance on our left but owing to inability to get in touch with Suffolks on left advance was impossible. Reported to Brigade.

4.45 - Our heavies dropping short and causing casualties among our own men. Reported to Brigade.

5.30 - Situation reported to Brigade.

6.45 - Casualties reported to Brigade.

8.40 - Situation reported to Brigade.

9.40 - 2Lt GC Hollis arrived with details of arrangements for attack by RW Fus at dawn - circulated to other Battns for information.

9.50 - German counter attacked on left edge of wood and in the village - rifle and machine gun fire for ten minutes - attack apparently driven off.

10.40 - Details of new attack received from Bde.

10.45 - Details of change in dispositions received from Norfolks and arrangements made to comply with this.

10.50 - BM45 received from Bde and timed at 8.45pm. As Norfolks message was later and after conference with Essex it was decided to act on the Norfolks information. Wires to Brigade all broken.

11.50 - Heavy shelling by Germans.

Source www.thewardrobe.org.uk/wardiary.php

 

Jack Grigglestone……………………………….1st Norfolks

 

Name: GRIGGLESTONE Initials: J

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Norfolk Regiment Unit Text: 1st Bn.

Date of Death: 20/12/1914 Service No: 6361

Grave/Memorial Reference: Panel 4. Memorial: YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=907979

 

No match on Norlink

 

There is a 17 year old John Grigglestone on the 1901 census, who is listed at 7, Fishergate in the Parish of St Edmunds. John’s occupation is shown as “Soldier”. This is the household of his widowed mother, Mary Ann, (aged 38 and a Dressmaker from Norwich). Making up the household is her other son, William, aged 14 and a Boot Finisher from Yarmouth.

 

There is also a 7 year old John, born Ballater, Scotland, who is listed at 49, Peacock Street, in the Parish of St Paul. This is the household of his parents, George, (aged 45 and a Cabinet Makers Clerk, from Berr in Ireland), and Isabella, (aged 37 and from Fuchibridge in Scotland). Their other children are:-

Geoffrey……………………aged 1.……………………born Norwich

Henry P…………………….aged 10.…………………born Tricomalee, Ceylon

Isabella……………………..aged 3.…………………..born Norwich

William…………………….aged 5.…………………..born Ballater, Scotland

 

On the 1911 census, the individual who was a soldier now appears to be listed as a “Jack”. There is no trace of the younger John.

 

Battalion War Diary

17/12/14-28/12/14 Relieved DCLI at MESSINES. Very bad, wet approach

1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t...

*There is no reference to any casualties during this period. While fellow Brigade unit the 1st Cheshire’s records no action, there is this in the War diary of the 1st Bedfords, another Brigade Unit.

 

20 Dec 1914 Heavy bombardment of enemy's trenches, to cooperate with attack from other parts of our line, during yesterday, & to a lesser extent today. Enemy did not respond with much rifle fire, but shelled our trenches. About 12 yards of our front trench blown in by heavy explosive shell, & machine gun damaged. 2 men killed, 2 wounded by 'snipers'.

Source: www.bedfordregiment.org.uk/1stbn/1stbtn1914diary.html

 

William G Guyton………………………………3rd Lincs

 

Name: GUYTON, WILLIAM GEORGE

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Lincolnshire Regiment Unit Text: 1st Bn.

Age: 24 Date of Death: 22/10/1915 Service No: 15599

Grave/Memorial Reference: I. 9. Cemetery: DIVISIONAL CEMETERY

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=93259

Note - different Battalion

 

No match on Norlink

 

The 1911 census has a William Guyton, born circa 1891 in Norwich and still resident there.. However, this individual doesn’t appear to be on the Genes Re-united transcription of the 1901 census for England & Wales., and he was probably just to young to have made the 1891 census.

 

Bit of background on the family name can be found here

guyton.co.uk/Page_8.html

 

Robert Hawes……………………………….......Royal Engineers

 

Most likely

Name: HAWES Initials: R P

Rank: Pioneer Regiment/Service: Royal Engineers Unit Text: 126th Field Coy.

Date of Death: 17/09/1916 Service No: 84676

Grave/Memorial Reference: IV. D. 61. Cemetery: HEILLY STATION CEMETERY, MERICOURT-L'ABBE

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=271203

 

The Great War Roll of Honour confirms that Pioneer Hawes is a Robert P.

 

There are several possible Robert’s with a Norwich connection on both the 1901 and 1911 census, but none are down as a Robert P. and there is nothing currently in the most likely searches of the Baptismal records - (baptised Norwich, date range 1881 - 1901, surname Hawes).

 

No match on Norlink

 

The 126th Field Company were attached to the 21st Division and supported the brigades of that Division in the attacks and counter-attacks at Fler-Courcelette during the period 15th - 22nd July.

Source www.reubique.com/126fc.htm

 

www.firstworldwar.com/battles/flers.htm

www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_flers_courcelette.html

 

Alfred Walter Jay……………………………….Australian Infantry Force

 

Name: JAY, ALFRED WALTER

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Australian Infantry, A.I.F. Unit Text: 50th Bn.

Age: 23 Date of Death: 26/09/1917 Service No: 3421

Additional information: Son of Walter and Eliza Jay, of 8, Peacock St., Norwich, England.

Grave/Memorial Reference: Panel 7 - 17 - 23 - 25 - 27 - 29 - 31. Memorial: YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=924472

 

No match on Norlink

The 8 year old Alfred, born Norwich, is recorded on the 1901 census at 46 Peacock Street, in the Parish of St Saviours. This is the household of his parents, Walter, (aged 37 and a Bricklayers Labourer from Norwich), and Eliza, (aged 30 and from Norwich).

 

Alfred was baptised in St Clements on the 18th September 1892. His parents were listed as Walter, a labourer by trade, and Eliza. No date of birth is listed. The family were living at Peacock Street.

 

The Army Records can be seen on line at the Australian National Archive

naa12.naa.gov.au/NameSearch/Interface/ItemDetail.aspx?Bar...

naa12.naa.gov.au/scripts/Imagine.asp?B=7372245

 

Alfred Walter Jay, a seamen by trade, enlisted at Adelaide, South Australia on the 26th January 1917 as part of the ninth re-enforcements of the 50th Battalion. He gave his age as 25th, his birthplace as Norwich in the UK, and his next of kin as his mother, Eliza Jay, of no 8, Peacock Street, Norwich.

 

He is described as 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing 150lbs, with brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion.

His distinctive marks include tattoo’s on both upper arms.

 

He embarked at Adelaide on the 10th February 1917, on HMAT “Seeang Bee”, arriving at Devonport on the 2nd May. The same day he “marched in from Australia” to the 13th Training Battalion at Codford . By the 6th August he was dispatched to France for his final training.

 

On the 7th September he was marched out to his unit, who record him as being taken on strength on the 10th. On the 26th he is recorded as being killed in action.

 

His records note that he was buried half a mile west of Westhoek - (the grave must have been destroyed in subsequent fighting as he is now commemorated on the Menin Gate memorial.

 

In his will, in which he bequeaths everything to his mother, he lists his Australian bank account, so it doesn’t look as if he was a seaman stranded in Australia. The records include a receipt signed by Eliza Jay for his personal effects.

 

Early in 1917, the battalion participated in the advance that followed the German retreat to the Hindenburg Line, and attacked at Noreuil on 2 April. For his actions at Noreuil Private Joergen Jensen was awarded the Victoria Cross. Later that year, the focus of AIF operations moved to the Ypres sector in Belgium. There the battalion was involved in the battle of Messines between 7 and 12 June and the battle of Polygon Wood on 26 September. Another winter of trench routine followed.

Source : www.awm.gov.au/units/unit_11237.asp

 

50th Battalion War Diary

 

One of the appendices of the War Diary for September 1917 is the Commanding Officer’s report on the Battalions actions from 22nd to 27th September on ridge S E of Zonnebecke.

 

On the 22nd Sept the Bn was billeted in Canal area.

 

Prior to moving forward packs and all baggage were dumped, all ranks being then ready to move wearing “Fighting Order”. From the Canal area, routes forward to YPRES and WESTHOEK were reconnoitred by Officers and N.C.O’s of all Coys. A red stripe was painted on the back of Steel Helmet for 50th Bn, attacking Red Line and Blue for 49th and 51st Bn attacking Blue Line.

 

The Bn move to YPRES on the 23rd September 1917.

Two bombs, extra 100 rounds S.A.A & 4 sandbags per man, also 80 picks and 80 shovels were issued to each company. At 6.30 pm the Bn left for WESTHOEK & relieved the 52nd Bn, relief being completed by 10.20 pm, the 52nd Bn moving forward & taking over front Line.

 

On 24th Sept. routes from WESTHOEK to Front Line were reconnoitred by all officers, number of NCO, scouts and runners. Ground to be captured was well looked over & valuable information given by 52nd Bn officers.

 

On 25th Sept, Orders for attack were issued. Bn was given a 540 yard Frontage and had to attack to a depth of 750 yards. Task being to capture first objective, “RED LINE”, 49th & 51st Bn. then moving through to their Objective, “BLUE LINE”, 300 yards in advance of RED LINE.

 

Attack was carried out on four lines, each Coy in 100 YDS frontage.

Order of battle being from right to left, - “A”, “B”, “C” and “D” Coys.

Total number taking part in attack being 19(?) officers, 530 Other Ranks.

 

An extra water bottle and two days preserved rations were issued at 9 p.m on 25th Sept.

Casualties to midnight on 25th Sept. 14 O.R. killed, 1 Off 15 O.R wounded.

 

26th September 1917. Bn left WESTHOEK 1 am moving by platoons in single file 100 Yds interval between Platoons to front line and were formed up on tape ready to attack by 4.30 am.

Zero was at 5.50 am.

To this time there were no casualties.

Moving to position of assembly and forming on the tape were well done. Bn had a good start for the attack. On advancing under barrage troops in a few instances moved to close and casualties were sustained a few also being by short shooting of some batteries.

Barrage generally was very good.

Troops gained objective at 6.50 am, very few casualties to this time had been caused.

With a few exceptions no general resistance was met with. Germans surrendering very freely, one party of enemy only holding a group of four concrete dugouts causing most trouble, but were cleared up by previously detailed mopping-up party. 2 M.G’s, 3M.T.M’s & 15 enemy being captured from these dugouts. Mopping up did not cause much trouble, dugouts and all other likely places were bombed. Mopping up platoons of all Coys reported mopping up completed & rejoined their Coys about 10 minutes after objective had been reached.

Direction was easily maintained, connecting files between Head of Column being of assistance beside direction being maintained from left Flank. 4th Bde. The Bn.guiding section was also of assistance.

 

Consolidation was not difficult, digging was easy though wet & not much trouble was caused by enemy shelling., M.G’s or snipers.

 

The Bn dug in by establishing a series of posts which were afterwards connected up making an almost a continuous trench of an average depth of 6ft, sandbags being used for making fire steps.

 

Strong posts were constructed one on each flank, Left flank being covered by 3 Vickers, 2 T.M’s, Right Flank by 1 T.M.

 

Retaliation on front line was not heavy until about a hour & a half after zero hour when RED LINE and area behind was fired on continuously by 5.9’s and 4.8’s and indirect M G fire. Snipers & M G fire by this time

Had become very consistent, and were causing a great deal of trouble to Front Line and Support Line.

 

As this Bn was holding RED LINE nothing very definite can be said, although counter-attacks were made on both flanks and S.O.S signals being sent up. Our artillery response was almost immediate.

 

Although effect of M.G. barrage could not be observed the barrage was very thick, well maintained, and sounded good.

 

All communications from front line to rear were done by runner, it being not practicable to use & maintain telephonic communication. Visual work was attempted but owing to no suitable cover it was impossible to work through from front line.

 

Communication to aeroplane from front line was done by lighting RED FLARES 20 minutes after objective had been gained. From Battalion H.Qrs to Bde the communication was mostly maintained by telephone, runners being used on special occasions. Two messages were dispatched from same place & time to same destination, one by pigeon and one by telephone. Phone message arrived two minutes before pigeon. This was the only message sent by pigeon.

 

R.A.P was established really too far away from the objective but owing to lack of suitable accomodation this was unavoidable, consequently long carries were necessary making evacuation of wounded slow & giving much extra work to Regimental StretcherBearers.

 

It is thought than an improvement in the medical arrangements would have been an addition of bearers from a Field Ambulance.

 

The Battalion was relieved by Coys from Battalions of 49th and 51st on the morning of 27th September 1917, relief being completed by 5.50 am.

 

The 50th Bn then moved to old front line, being relieved from there by 46th Bn at 10 pm on 27th Sept.1917.

 

Counter attack was attempted at 6.45 pm on this night. Attack was evidently made on a broad frontage, S.O.S signals going up from our two flanks. No S.O.S was fired from the Bde frontage and enemy was not seen on our front.

 

Our artillery S.O.S barrage was most intense and presumably attack did not develop but was dispersed by artillery.

 

Total Casualties from operations

 

4 Officers

174 Other ranks

Killed

 

35 Other Ranks

 

Wounded

 

4 Officers

139 Other Ranks.

 

Source: www.awm.gov.au/cms_images/AWM4/23/AWM4-23-67-15.pdf

 

Wednesday 26th September 1917 - Day 52

 

Rainfall 0.5mm

 

Today marks the start of the Battle for Polygon Wood, lasting until 3rd October.

 

Zero Hour was 5.50 am.

 

4th Australian Div

 

The Australians attacked at 6.45 am almost an hour after Zero Hour. Whether this was planned or not I don’t know.

 

13 Bde

 

13 Bde attacked with the 50th Bn, supported by 49th and 51st Bns. On their way to the Green Line the 50th captured 2 machine guns and 19 prisoners. They then advanced to the Blue Line . 51st Bn moved up and captured the Brick Yard in Zonnebeke, in touch with 3rd Div. At 4 pm and 6 pm , German troops massing for a counterattack were dispersed with artillery.

forum.irishmilitaryonline.com/showthread.php?t=11535&...

 

www.aif.adfa.edu.au:8080/showPerson?pid=152718

 

William Henry Jewson (Major)…………………4th Norfolks

 

Name: JEWSON, WILLIAM HENRY

Rank: Major Regiment/Service: Norfolk Regiment Unit Text: 4th Bn.

Age: 42 Date of Death: 19/04/1917

Additional information: Son of George and Mary Jewson, of Tower House, Bracondale, Norwich.

Grave/Memorial Reference: Panels 12 to 15. Memorial: JERUSALEM MEMORIAL

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=1645790

 

There is a picture of Major Jewson on Norlink

norlink.norfolk.gov.uk/02_Catalogue/02_013_PictureTitleIn...

 

The accompanying notes read:-

Major Jewson was the eldest son of Alderman George Jewson of Norwich. He was killed in action 18th April 1917

(Note - this date is different to CWGC by a day)

 

The 1911 census has a Henry Jewson, born Tombland Norwich and recorded in Norwich, born circa 1876. The same individual doesn’t appear to be on the 1901 or 1891 or 1881 census.

 

On the 1901 census his parents are listed at 10 Cotman Road, Thorpe St Andrews. His father George is a timber merchant from Hertfordshire, his mother Mary. J from Norwich. The Jewsons have these children living with them:-

Dorothea………………..aged 16.………………..born Norwich

John C…………………..aged 11.………………..born Norwich

Kathleen S T……………aged 13.………………..born Norwich

 

As well as two live in servants. Which raises the question of where was Henry. If he was at boarding school, was it outside England and Wales, and why send a child away at the age of 4/5. If the Jewson’s had their children public school educated, why was John at home.

 

Oh the joys of the internet - some of the missing period is accounted for by the Roll of Honour site for the former pupils of The Leys School, Cambridge.

 

Jewson was born in 1876. Son of George and Mary Jewson, of Tower House, Bracondale, Norwich. He came to The Leys in 1891 at the age of 15 and went into School House.

On leaving school, Jewson worked for the family timber business in Norwich and was well known for his religious and philanthropic commitments. He founded and led a Boys Brigade Company and held a commission in the Territorial Army.

At the outbreak of war, Jewson re-joined the Norfolk Regiment, serving with distinction in the Dardanelles, Egypt and Palestine. He was killed in action during the Battle of Gaza on 19 April 1917. He was aged 42 and had reached the rank of Major.

Source: www.roll-of-honour.com/Cambridgeshire/CambridgeLeysSchool...

 

The history of the 1/4th and 1/5th Territorial Battalions in the Great War is so closely connected that it is possible and desirable to avoid repetition by dealing with both in the same section. They were together in the same brigade during the whole of the operations in which they took part in Gallipoli, Egypt, and Palestine, and even for a few days were amalgamated in a composite battalion.

The order for mobilization reached both battalions on the evening of August 4, 1914, a few hours before the formal declaration of war. Next morning the 1/4th Battalion assembled at the Drill Hall in Chapel Field, Norwich, and was billeted in the City of Norwich Schools on the Newmarket Road.On August 11th, the 1/4th Battalion left by special train for Ingatestone in Essex.

 

Listed amongst its officers at the time of mobilisation was Captain W H Jewson.

Source: user.online.be/~snelders/sand.htm

 

19th April 1917 During the 2nd Battle of Gaza,

 

Facing the Tank Redoubt was the 161st Brigade of the 54th Division. To their right were the two Australian battalions (1st and 3rd) of the Imperial Camel Corps Brigade who had dismounted about 4,000 yards from their objective. As the infantry went in to attack at 7.30am they were joined by a single tank called "The Nutty" which attracted a lot of shell fire. The tank followed a wayward path towards the redoubt on the summit of a knoll where it was fired on point blank by four field guns until it was stopped and set alight in the middle of the position.

The infantry and the 1st Camel Battalion, having suffered heavy casualties on their approach, now made a bayonet charge against the trenches. About 30 "Camels" and 20 of the British infantry (soldiers of the 5th (territorial Battalion of the Norfolk Regiment) reached the redoubt, then occupied by around 600 Turks who immediately broke and fled towards their second line of defences to the rear.

The British and Australians held on unsupported for about two hours by which time most had been wounded. With no reinforcements at hand and a Turkish counter-attack imminent, the survivors endeavoured to escape back to their own lines.

To the right (west) of Tank Redoubt, the 3rd Camel Battalion, advancing in the gap between two redoubts, actually made the furthest advance of the battle, crossing the Gaza-Beersheba Road and occupying a pair of low hills (dubbed "Jack" and "Jill"). As the advances on their flanks faltered, the "Camels" were forced to retreat to avoid being isolated.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_Gaza

 

More than a thousand one hundred of the men of the 54th posted killed wounded or missing were from the two Norfolk regiment battalions, equating to 75% of their strength. Eastern Daily Press "Sunday" section May 5, 2007

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_Gaza

 

John King……………………………….............1st Lincs

 

Name: KING, JOHN

Rank: Private Regiment/Service: Lincolnshire Regiment Unit Text: 1st Bn.

Age: 19 Date of Death: 09/06/1918 Service No: 51970

Additional information: Son of E. Charles and Matilda King, of 11, Long's Yard, Fishergate, Norwich.

Grave/Memorial Reference: XVII. F. 17. Cemetery: TERLINCTHUN BRITISH CEMETERY, WIMILLE

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=4026031

 

The first rest camps for Commonwealth forces were established near Terlincthun in August 1914 and during the whole of the First World War, Boulogne and Wimereux housed numerous hospitals and other medical establishments. The cemetery at Terlincthun was begun in June 1918 when the space available for service burials in the civil cemeteries of Boulogne and Wimereux was exhausted. It was used chiefly for burials from the base hospitals, but Plot IV Row C contains the graves of 46 RAF personnel killed at Marquise in September 1918 in a bombing raid by German aircraft. In July 1920, the cemetery contained more than 3,300 burials, but for many years Terlincthun remained an 'open' cemetery and graves continued to be brought into it from isolated sites and other burials grounds throughout France where maintenance could not be assured.

CWGC www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=202753...

 

No match on Norlink

 

The 1 year old John, born Wroxham, is recorded on the 1901 census at 5, Baileys Yard, Norwich, in the Parish of St Pauls. This is the household of his parents, Edward Chas, (aged 27 and a basket maker from Limpenhoe, Norfolk), and Matilda, (aged 22 and from Stalham). The Kings also have a daughter, Annie Lama, aged 3 and born Belaugh.

 

The 1st Lincs were part of the 21st Division. According to the Regimental Warpath web-site, the Division includes amongst its battle honours

Battle of the Aisne. 27 May-7 Jun 1918, including the attack on Bligny and Bois des Buttes.

www.warpath.orbat.com/divs/21_div.htm

The German attack succeeded in pushing the Allies across the Aisne and down as far as the Marne at Chateau Thierry, capturing the towns of Soissons and La Fere-en-Tardenois as they did so.

www.1914-1918.net/bat24.htm

Absolutely fascinating thread here about the battle, although 1st Lincs only get mentioned in passing

1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=44335

 

By late May the battalion was holding positions in the Romigny sector when it was warned at 8:00pm on the 26th to expect a German assault the following morning. For the next three days the 1st Lincolns withheld repeated attacks by large numbers of German troops. When the battalion was ordered to fall back on the 29th at 7:00pm only 8 officers and 42 men remained unwounded and with the battalion

Source: www.21stdivision1914-18.org/georgewilliamboyall.htm

 

Arthur Leeste……………………………….......2/4th Norfolks

 

No surname Leeste or Leest or Leste on the CWGC database

No Leeste on the Great War Roll of Honour

No match on Norlink

No match for this surname on the 1901 or 1911 census or common variants. There is a surname Least, but they seem to live almost entirely in the North East.

 

2/4th Battalion

Formed in Norwich in September 1914 as a Second Line Battalion. Disbanded in UK in June 1918.

www.1914-1918.net/norfolks.htm

  

1. The spiritual entity Qalb

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Adam

 

In the Urdu language the fleshy meat, (the heart) is known as dil, and in Arabic it is called fawad. The spiritual entity that is next to the heart is the Qalb and according to a Prophetic statement the heart and the Qalb are two separate entities.

 

Our solar system is the physical human sphere. There are other realms and spheres, for example the realm of the angels, the realm of the throne of God, the realm of the soul, the realm of the secrets, the realm of unification and the realm of the essence of God. These spheres and life forms inhabiting these spheres have existed before the eruption of the ball of fire, our Sun, which created our solar system. Ordinary angels were created alongside the creation of the souls when God commanded "Be" but the Archangels and the spiritual entities (which are placed inside the human body at birth) have existed in these realms before the formation of our solar system.

 

Many planets in our solar system were inhabited but subsequently these life forms became extinct. The remaining planets and their inhabitants are awaiting their destruction. The Archangels and the spiritual entities (of the human body) were created seventy thousand years before the command "Be."

 

Of these spiritual entities God placed the Qalb in the realm of love. It is with this that a human being is able to become connected with God. The Qalb acts like a telephone operator between God and the human being. A human being receives guidance and inspiration through it. Whereas the worship and the meditation done by the spiritual entities themselves can reach the highest realm, the Throne of God, with the aid of the Qalb. The Qalb itself, however cannot travel beyond the realm of the angels, as its place of origin is the Khuld, the lowest heaven in the realm of the angels.

 

The Qalb’s meditation is from within and its vibrating rosary is within the human skeleton (the heartbeat). People that failed to achieve this meditation of the Qalb in this lifetime will be regretful, even though they may be in paradise. As God has stated regarding those who will go to paradise, that do they, the inhabitants of paradise think that they will be equal to those who are elevated (reached higher realms by practicing the spiritual disciplines and becoming illuminated). As those that have achieved the meditation of the Qalb, they will enjoy its pleasures even in paradise when their Qalb will be vibrating with the Name of God.

After death physical worship ceases to exist and the people whose Qalb and spiritual entities are not strengthened and illuminated with the light of God are afflicted and distressed in their graves and their spiritual entities waste away. Whereas the illuminated and strengthened spiritual entities will go to the realm where the righteous will wait before the final judgement.

After the day of judgement a second body will be given, the illuminated spiritual entities along with the human soul will enter that body. The people that taught their spiritual entities, meditation, whereby the entities chanted the Name of God Allah in this life time will find that the spiritual entities will continue with this meditation even in the hereafter. Such people will continue to be elevated and exalted in the hereafter.

  

Those that were “blind of heart” (not illuminated) in this life time will be in darkness in that realm also, as this world was the place of action and effort. Those in the latter category will become quiescent.

Besides the Christians and the Jews the Hindu faith also holds a belief in these spiritual entities. The Hindu faith refers to them as Shaktian and the Muslims know them as Lata’if.

The Qalb is two inches, to the left of the heart. This spiritual entity is yellow in colour. When it is illuminated in a person, that person sees the colour yellow in their eyes. Not only this but there are many practitioners of alternative medicine who use the colours of these spiritual entities to heal people.

Most people regard their heart’s word, “inner feeling” to be truthful. If the hearts of people were indeed truthful, then why are all the people of the heart not united?

The Qalb of an ordinary person is in the sleeping or unconscious state and it does not possess any appreciation or awareness. Due to the dominance of the spirit of the self, the ego, and the Khannas, or due to the individual’s own simple- mindedness the heart can make judgements in error. Placing trust in a sleeping Qalb is foolish.

Only when the Name of God Allah, does vibrate in the heart does an appreciation of right and wrong and wisdom follow. At this stage the Qalb is known as the awakened Qalb. Thereafter due to the increase in the meditation by the Qalb, of the Name of God Allah, it is then known as the God-seeking Qalb. At this stage the heart is capable of preventing the person from doing wrong but it is still incapable of making a right or just decision. Thereafter and only when the Light and the rays of the Grace of God (theophany) start to descend upon that heart, is it known as the purified and illuminated Qalb that stands in the presence of God (witnessing Qalb).

 

A Prophetic statement:

“The mercy of God descends upon a broken heart and an afflicted grave.”

 

Thereafter when the heart reaches this stage then one must accept whatever it dictates, quietly without question because due to the rays of the Light and the Grace of God the spirit of the self, (ego) becomes completely illuminated, purified and at peace. God is then closer to that individual than that person’s jugular vein.

God then says, “I become his tongue with which he speaks and I become his hands with which he holds.”

   

2. The Human Soul

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Abraham

 

This is on the right side of the chest. This is awakened and illuminated by the meditation and one-pointed concentration on it. Once it becomes illuminated, a vibration similar to the heartbeat is felt on the right side of the chest. Then the Name of God, Ya Allah is matched with the vibrating pulse. The meditation of the soul is done in this way. At this point, there are now two spiritual entities meditating inside the human body, this is an advancement in rank and status and is better than the Qalb. The soul is a light red in colour and when it is awakened, it is able to travel to the realm of the souls (the station of the Archangel Gabriel). Anger and rage are attached to it that burn and turn into majesty.

  

3. The spiritual entity Sirri

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Moses

 

This spiritual entity is to the left of the centre of the chest. This is also awakened and illuminated by the meditation and one-pointed concentration on it with the Name of God, Ya Hayy, Ya Qayyum. Its colour is white and in the dream state or by spiritual separation from the physical body “transcendental meditation” it can journey to the realm of the secrets. Now there are three spiritual entities meditating within a person and its status is higher than the other two.

   

4. The spiritual entity Khaffi

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Jesus

 

This is to the right of the centre of the chest. It too is taught the Name of God Ya Wahid by meditation. It is green in colour and it can reach the realm of unification. Due to the meditation of four entities one's status is further increased.

 

5. The spiritual entity Akhfa

 

Prophecy and knowledge relating to this was granted to the Prophet Mohammed

 

This is situated at the centre of the chest. It is awakened by meditating on the Name of God, Ya Ahad. It is purple in colour and it too, is connected to that veil in the realm of unification behind which is the throne of God.

 

The hidden spiritual knowledge relating to these five spiritual entities was granted to the Prophets, one by one and half of the knowledge of every spiritual entity was granted from the Prophets to the Saints of their time. In this way there became ten parts of this knowledge. The Saints in turn passed this knowledge on to the spiritually favoured (Godly) who then had the benefit of the sacred knowledge.

 

The apparent knowledge of the seen is connected to the physical body, the spoken word, the human realm and the spirit of the self, this is for the ordinary mortals. This knowledge is contained in a book that has thirty parts. Spiritual knowledge was also given to the Prophets by revelation brought by Gabriel and for this reason it is known as the spiritual Holy Scripture.

 

Many of the verses of the Qur’an would sometimes be abolished, since the Prophet Mohammed would sometimes mention matters relating to this “hidden spiritual knowledge” before ordinary people, which was only meant for the special and Godly. Later this knowledge passed on spiritually from the chest of one Saint to another, and now it has become widespread by its publication in books.

  

6. The spiritual entity Anna

 

This spiritual entity is inside the head and is colourless. It is by the meditation on the Name of God Ya Hu that this spiritual entity reaches its pinnacle. It is this spiritual entity that when it becomes illuminated and powerful it can stand in the Presence of God, face to face, and communicate with God unobstructed. Only the extreme lovers of God reach this realm and station. Besides this there are a few and extremely exalted people who are granted additional spiritual entities, for example the spiritual entity Tifl-e-Nuri or a spiritual entity of the Godhead, Jussa-e-Tofiq-e-Ilahi, the spiritual status of such people is beyond understanding.

 

With the spiritual entity, Anna, God is seen in the dream state.

 

With the spiritual entity of the Godhead, God is seen in the “physical meditating state” when the spiritual entity itself leaves the human body and transcends to the essence of God.

 

Those possessing the spiritual entity, the Tifl-e-Nuri, see God whilst they are fully conscious.

 

It is these people who are the majesty and power of God in the world. They can either occupy the people by prescribing worship and austerities or by their spiritual grace send a person straight to the realm of God’s love. In their sight, concerning dispensing spiritual grace the believers and the non-believers, the dead and the living are all the same. Just as a thief became a Saint, in an instant, by the passing glimpse of the Saint Sheikh Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani, similarly, Abu-Bakr Havari and Manga the thief, became instant Saints by the passing glimpses of such Saints.

 

The five major Messengers were given knowledge of the five spiritual entities separately and in order of their appearance, as a result of which spirituality continued to prosper. With whichever spiritual entity you practice meditation you will be connected to the corresponding Messenger and become worthy of receiving spiritual grace (from that Messenger).

 

Whichever spiritual entity receives the rays of the Grace of God (favour), the Sainthood granted to that spiritual entity will be connected to the corresponding Prophet’s spiritual grace.

 

Access to seven realms and gaining elevated spiritual status in the seven heavens is obtained through these spiritual entities.

The functions of the spiritual entities inside the human body

 

Akhfa: Due to the spiritual entity, Akhfa a person is able to speak. In its absence a person may have a normal tongue but will be dumb. The difference between human beings and animals lies in the presence or the absence of these spiritual entities. At birth, if the entity, Akhfa was unable to enter the body for whatever reason, then a Prophet appointed for the rectification of this ailment would be called to treat the condition as a result of which the dumb would start to speak.

 

Sirri: A person is able to see due to the spiritual entity, Sirri. If it does not enter the body the person is blind from birth. An appointed Prophet had the duty to find and place the spiritual entity into the body, as a result of which the blind would start to see again.

Qalb: Without the spiritual entity of the Qalb, in the body, a person is like the animals, unacquainted, far from God, miserable and without purpose. Returning this entity into the body was the task of the Prophets also.

The miracles of the Prophets were also granted to the saints, in the form marvels and mystical wonders as a result of which even the impious and liberal became close to God. When a spiritual entity is returned by any allocated Saint or Prophet, the deaf, dumb and the blind are healed.

Anna: When the spiritual entity, Anna, fails to enter the body, a person is regarded as insane even though the brain may be functioning normally.

Khaffi: In the absence of the spiritual entity, Khafi, a person is deaf, even if the ears are opened wide.

These conditions can be caused by other defects in the body, and can be treated. There is no cure in the case, where the defect is caused by the absence of the associated spiritual entity except where a Prophet or a Saint intervenes and cures the defect.

Nafs, self: As a result of the spiritual entity of the self (ego) a persons mind is occupied with the material world and it is because of the spiritual entity Qalb that a persons direction turns towards God. For more detail visit www.goharshahi.org or visit asipk.com and for videos visit HH rags

 

The KOM League

Flash Report

To end 2020

and

Kickoff 2021

 

If interested, this report is accessible at: www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/50766767243/

Even if you are not interested, it is still there. It is the reader’s choice to either partake or reject. Sure hope a few do the former.

____________________________________________________________________________

Annual Christmas call

 

Each year, approximately two or three days prior to Christmas, a cheerful voice announces that he is calling to tell his old friend Merry Christmas. The caller is Billy Bagwell of Homer, Louisiana and each time he relates that God is blessing him and that he loves my wife and I. This year a little more was elicited from him in the conversation. He is undergoing treatment for cancer and all is not as well as he would like. His parting comment was “John, I hope that I will be here next year to wish you a Merry Christmas.” I too, hope that is the case realizing that can go both ways.

 

Bagwell and his wife Joyce attended every KOM league reunion and was always the hit of the event when his did his pantomime of the man whose suit didn’t fit. It was such a humorous act that even those with hearing loss would laugh without being able to hear his words.

 

Bagwell has been mentioned numerous times in these reports. Since this report is far too voluminous I’m sharing this link to indicate is extensive minor league career after he had served in WW II. digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll3/id/12518/...

 

Another Christmas call used to come each afternoon on the 25th of December. It originated in Springfield, Missouri and was from the all-time home run hitter in KOM league history, Don Ervin. He was a native of Kansas City and did his heavy clouting for the 1952 Miami, Oklahoma Eagles. In recent years correspondence has been established with his daughter. This was a recent e-mail from her. “Merry Christmas. It’s been almost 3 years since my dad passed. Thank you for the pictures you send out. They are uplifting in times of sadness.”

 

There were many family members, of deceased KOM leaguers, who sent along Christmas greetings and a few former members of the league who sent greetings on their own behalf.

_______________________________________________________

One game shortstop.

 

In the final week of the 1946 season the St. Louis Cardinals sent a World War II veteran to Carthage, Missouri John James Meyer played in one game. It was the 114th contest of the season and he went 0-4 at the plate. The next spring he reported to the Cardinal training camp at Albany, Georgia but wasn’t on the bus to Carthage when the team headed north. That concluded his professional baseball days.

 

However, Meyer left a lasting memory of his very short time with Carthage. On the last day of the season he signed a baseball and that, along with one box score, are the only remaining pieces of evidence that he played professional baseball. Thanks to the late Oscar “Pappy” Walterman that baseball remains in my possession in a place that will not be revealed due to security reasons. Well, a little exaggeration isn’t all that bad, is it?

 

John James Meyer.https://www.tributearchive.com/obituaries/18444007/ John-James-Meyer/Jeromesville/Ohio/Fickes-Funeral-Home

 

John J. Meyer went to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on September 24, 2020 surrounded by his devoted family. Born May 25, 1925 in Stryker, Ohio, he was the only child of Carl and Miriam (Koehl) Meyer. In 1937, the family moved to England Station in rural Ashland County where they had purchased a farm. John attended a one-room schoolhouse until the eighth grade and graduated from Ashland High School in 1943. Upon graduation, he enlisted in the US Navy where he received his commission in 1944 after attending Oberlin College and Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. On November 24, 1945, John married Nona Harriet Powers in San Francisco, CA where he was stationed during World War II. Upon his discharge in 1946, John and Nona returned to the family farm in England Station where they raised their family of six sons and two daughters. John and Nona also opened their home to several foster children throughout the years.

 

John made a life and a living primarily on the family farm. During his lifetime he sold seed corn and was a dairy and grain farmer. John learned to fix anything and always had a spare part or tool and some words of wisdom when anyone needed them. He farmed in some capacity into his nineties. He also was a Broker/Realtor at his son’s real estate company, JC Meyer Realtors. He earned many awards as a Realtor including Salesman of the Year and the coveted Realtor of the Year from the Ashland Board of Realtors.

 

Having a strong sense of community, he served as a 4-H advisor for 25 years, a Montgomery Township Trustee for 20 years, an Ashland County Fair Board Director for over 30 years, and held many positions, including Board President, with the Ashland Board of Realtors. He was a long-time member of the Ashland Dickey Church of the Brethren and was a proud World War II Veteran.

 

John was preceded in death by his son John (JC) in 2002 and his wife Nona in 2009. He is survived by his children and their spouses: Chris and Sharon Meyer (Ashland), Rex Meyer (Ashland), Paul and Kris Meyer (Gold Hill, Oregon), Mary and Rolly Cox (Ashland), Dewey and Karen Meyer (Polk), Ann Davis (Olivesburg), Dan and Terri Meyer (Ashland) and daughter-in-law Sue Meyer (Jeromesville). He will also be deeply missed by 17 grandchildren, 27 great-grandchildren and 5 great great-grandchildren. A loving dad and grandpa, he enjoyed keeping up with the goings-on of his large family and his kitchen table became the family meeting place.

 

A Celebration of Life memorial service will be held on Sunday, October 11, 2020 at 1 PM at the Ashland Dickey Church of the Brethren with Pastor Jeff Messner officiating. The family will greet guests at the church one hour prior to the service and again after the service at the family farm. At the church, the sanctuary will be reserved for the family, but guests can watch the service in the downstairs hall or can listen to the service in their vehicles in the church parking lot. Burial will immediately follow the service in the Dickey Church Cemetery and then all are welcome to return to the family farm for a meal and further visitation with the family. Memorial contributions, if one wishes to do so, can be made to the Ashland Dickey Church of the Brethren 1509 Township Road 655 Ashland, OH 44805.

 

Ed comment:

 

With the passing of John Meyer only three members of the 1946 Carthage Cardinals remain, to my knowledge. They are former big league hurler Cloyd Victor Boyer, long-term Pennsylvania State Representative William Eckensberger Jr. and Thomas Wardner Crossley from Hilliards, Ohio who now resides in Florida. For those who fact check these reports be aware that Crossley’s Sporting News player card had his middle name as Warden, as did I, until some further research was undertaken. Crossley was released by the Cardinals at the end of 1946 and he signed with the St. Louis Browns and was with their Pittsburg, Kansas KOM league affiliate in 1947.

 

One player from the 1946 Carthage club was never located. That was Louis Robert Cloutier from Windsor, Ontario who also lived in Hull, Quebec, Canada.

____________________________________________________________________________

Robert Mack Ehrlich

www.legacy.com/obituaries/spokesman/obituary.aspx?n=rober... Photo is included in this link.

 

EHRLICH, Robert M. (Age 94) On August 31, Heaven's gates opened to welcome Robert Mack Ehrlich. Bob was born September 19, 1925 In Topeka, Kansas to parents, John Henry Ehrlich and Idamac Warner Ehrlich. He joined brother, John and sister, Mary.

 

Bob's early years were full of baseball from the time he could lift a bat until June of 1943 when he joined the Marine Corps. He served in the Pacific and was in the battles of Pelelieu and Okinawa and the Army of Occupation in Japan. He was discharged in February 1946 and that was when he met his wife-to-be Eleanor Griswold --- they met at Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas. Bob and "El" were married on November 8, 1947 (missed 73 years by two months). In 1948 they moved to Idaho where Bob attended Farragut College and Technical Institute which was located in the former Navy Base. In 1950 Bob went back into the Marine Corps and served in Korea where he was a member of the "Frozen Chosin" and received two Purple Hearts. He was discharged in 1951.

 

They lived in Topeka where Bob served on the Police Department for five years. Their daughter, Vickie, was born in 1951, followed by Bob in 1953 and John in 1957. In 1958, back to the Northwest and Coeur d' Alene where Bob was in the Panhandle Health Dept. stationed in Grangeville and Coeur d'Alene. Son, Bill joined the family in 1966 and in 1972, they moved to Whatcom County, Washington where Bob had the dream job of his life farming. They had a red raspberry ranch and he also had a woodworking shop where he built beautiful furniture and did inlay work with exotic woods. Then back to Coeur d' Alene in 2008 to be closer to family. In addition to his parents, Bob was preceded in death by brother, John and daughter, Vickie. He is survived by wife, Eleanor; children, Bob (Karen), John (Dana), and Bill (Joyce); six grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild. Due to declining health, Bob lived at Legends Assisted Living for the past five years and was loved and cared for there. Hospice of North Idaho was involved in his care for the last months and his family can never thank both Hospice and Legends enough for the loving care he received. In lieu of flowers, any contribution in Bob's memory can be made to Christ the King Lutheran Church Roof Fund or Hospice of North Idaho. A celebration of Bob's life will be held at 11:00 AM on Saturday, September 19, 2020 at Christ the King Lutheran Church, 1700 E. Pennsylvania Ave., Coeur d' Alene, ID 83814. The service will be streamed on ctkcda.com Yates Funeral Home is entrusted with final arrangements. Please visit Bob's online memorial and sign his guestbook at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com.

 

Ed comments:

 

Ehrlich pitched for the 1947 Independence, Kansas Yankees. His Sporting News player card shows his activity from 1947 to 1950 at which time he was back in the United States Marine Corps and was unfortunate to have been at the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir. digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll3/id/52252/... The Sporting News card provides a great hint as to how he wound up spending the bulk of his life in Spokane, Washington.

 

In 1947 Ehrlich filled out the Baseball Questionnaire which is found at this link. It requires a subscription to Ancestry.com to access it. www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/61599/images/480... When his middle name was being transcribed for the Ancestry site someone interpreted “Mack” as “Nock.”

 

Ehrlich played American Legion baseball, in Topeka, with Lee and Stokes Dodson. All three of those guys went into the Marine Corps during WWII. Lee Dodson was in the KOM League, in 1946 and the next year the trio of the Dodson boys and Ehrlich were playing professional baseball in the New York Yankee chain. Lee was with the Kansas City Blues of the American Association and Stokes and Ehrlich were hurling for the Independence, Kansas Yankees of the KOM league.

 

This link is the obituary for Ehrlich that appeared in the Lynden, Washington Times. It is included as it has a photo of him during his Marine Corps days as well as how he appeared in his senior years. www.lyndentribune.com/community/obituaries/robert-ehrlich...

________________________________________________

James Laverne Qualls==1950 Independence, Kansas Yankees

www.wilsonsfuneralhome.net/obituary/james-qualls?lud=9610...

 

On Friday morning, December the 18th the following note was received from Sparta, Illinois.

“Hi John a note to let you know Jim passed away on Tuesday. He was 89 and would be 90 Jan. 31. We were married 68 years. Thanks for everything .....Marge.”

 

Ed comments:

 

Over the years a lot of correspondence went back and forth from the Qualls family and Yours truly. James was a teammate of Bill Virdon in 1950 at Independence, Kansas. They were both Yankee minor league property at the time. However, Virdon wound up with the St. Louis Cardinals and was a Rookie of the Year a hand full of years later. Over the years Qualls became a Cardinal fan due to his proximity to St. Louis and their far-flung radio and television outreach.

 

Knowing that the Virdons had long been in touch with this source, Marge asked for the Virdons e-mail address so she could send them e-mails. However, at about that time Shirley Virdon ceased e-mailing, as she had in the past, and thus the Qualls/Virdon connection wasn’t reestablished.

 

James L. Qualls of Sparta, Illinois

January 31, 1931 - December 15, 2020

SPARTA – James L. Qualls, 89, of Sparta, passed away at 3:05 pm, Tuesday, December 15, 2020, at Sparta Community Hospital, Sparta, Illinois.

 

James was born in Jacob, Illinois, on January 31, 1931, the son of Robert F. and Dara (Moschenrose) Qualls. He married Margie “Marge” Eaton on January 16, 1953, in Piggott, AR. James was a retired Prudential Insurance Agent. He was a member of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Sparta, IL. He was a 50-year member of Hope Lodge #162 A.F. & F.M., Sparta, and an Ainad Shriner, East St. Louis, IL. James was the Chartered President of the Trico Lions Club. He was an avid golfer and achieved 5 holes-in-one! James loved flying and was a licensed pilot, loved the St. Louis Cardinals and spent some time in the Yankee’s Minor League.

 

James is survived by his wife, Margie Qualls of Sparta, IL, brother, Jerry (Lois) Qualls of Goreville, IL, and lots of loving nieces and nephews.

 

James was preceded in death by his Parents and one Sister, Pat Arbeiter.

 

James’s wishes are to be cremated and a Graveside Service at Caledonia Cemetery, Sparta, IL, will be held at a later date. Memorials may be given to Sparta Food Pantry and can be mailed to Wilson’s Funeral Home, PO Box 217, Steeleville, IL 62288. To sign the guestbook visit www.wilsonsfuneralhome.net.

 

The following link shows the Sporting News players card that was maintained for Qualls.

digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll3/id/92250/...

 

Two years ago an article featuring Qualls appeared on the Internet. Most liked it was shared at that time since the person writing this report was mentioned in it. The writer of that newspaper story got one detail incorrect but it wasn’t enough to prevent me from sharing that link, one more time. countyjournal.org/james-qualls-reflects-on-his-days-in-pr...

______________________________________________________________________________

Robert James Rose--- Leamington, Ontario

 

Bob Rose played for the 1949 Pittsburg, Kansas Browns. I was never able to verify much about him until Dec. 3. 2020. The following is an interview with him on a legacy site for Korean War veterans. There are four links like this one.

koreanwarlegacy.org/interviews/robert-j-rose/

 

If anyone who is interested can’t pull up that entire interview, in narrative format, let me know and an attempt at a miracle will be undertaken to get it to you.

_____________________________________________________________________________

A long search comes to a conclusion.

 

Back in the days when KOM league reunions were an annual event there was always a name or two that was bandied about by former teammates of a player that hadn’t been located. One name always came up when speaking with Brandy Davis who played not only for the Bartlesville Pirates but also the Pirates whose home was Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during that era.

 

Each year Davis would ask if there was any trace of Bill Phillips who caught for the 1951 team of which Davis was a member. The years passed swiftly and in June of 2005 Davis departed this realm not knowing of his former teammate’s fate.

 

Over the next 15 years the search didn’t cease in locating Phillips or to learn of his fate. For all the years of searching the name of William Eugene Phillips born July 7, 1931 in Terre Haute, Indiana nothing appeared.

 

In looking at his Sporting News player card it showed that he had filled it out as Bill Eugene Phillips. digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll3/id/105253... That name was not found in Terre Haute but there was a reference to an obituary of a lady by the name of Jeanine Phillips. Following the “bouncing ball” quick fingers took me to her grave marker and there was the name of her husband. The first reaction was “Oh, no.” Then, looking closer the name “Bill Eugene Phillips” was on the marker, along with his birthdate but no death date. In reading her obituary I found Jeanine had been married to a Bill Eugene Phillips on February 27, 1954 and she passed away on May 2, 2008 and her husband survived her

images.findagrave.com/photos/2014/20/123850477_1390333718...

 

At this juncture it was pretty obvious Mr. Phillips is alive. A few clicks of the Internet searching for Bill Eugene Phillips turned up an address for him in Florida. That would be great news to share with his former 1951 Bartlesville teammate but there aren’t that many remaining who would recall the name. Brandy Davis and Ronnie Kline would have remembered him but they are no longer around. Phillips caught Kline, the future big leaguer, a number of times in 1951.

____________________________________________________________________________

Glen Gorbous’s amazing throw

 

John that is an unbelievable baseball throw. My brain cannot comprehend it. I thought I had a decent arm, but evidently not. I hope you had a good funeral for butterball and all who attended enjoyed. Wishing you and Noel a very blessed Christmas. Look forward to your great stories next year. Take care. Don Papst—Chanute, Kansas

 

Ed comment:

 

Well butterball was the theme of a note shared with a few people prior to Thanksgiving. If you missed it here it is. “Thanksgiving. We've been told that only six people are allowed to meet for Thanksgiving Day, but 30 people for a funeral. With this, I announce that we will be holding a funeral for our pet turkey named "Butterball" who will pass away on November 26, 2020. Refreshments provided. In lieu of flowers, please bring a side dish.”

 

On the subject of the throw by Glen Gorbous the Guinness Book of World Records at the time listed it at 445’ 10”.

 

From Portland Univ. Hall of Fame baseball coach regarding Gorbous

 

This note is relative to Glen Gorbous and his GREAT throwing arm. We were teammates in 1950 in The Arizona-Texas League. I coached Dale Murphy and I always compared his arm to Glen’s...both arms were unbelievable!. Howie Haak, Dodger scout, signed me in 1948...keep up the Great job! Kindest regards. Jack Dunn

 

A link to the Gorbous throw. albertadugoutstories.com/2017/08/02/alberta-kid-with-an-a... The throw was on August 1, 1957 when Gorbous was playing with the Omaha, Nebraska Cardinals.

____________________________________________________________________________

Recalling youthful days.

 

Enjoyed your news on the KOM players. Like many Carthage kids I still remember some of the 18 year old kids who played back in those days!! Have a great Christmas and stay safe. Merle Southern—Antarctic geologist among other things

 

Ed reply:

 

Thanks for the note. Those guys gave us a lot of lasting memories. Back then we thought they were older than they were.

____________________________________________________________________________

ACKKKKKK

 

An e-mail was received from a Kansas reader who had this reaction regarding a statement made in Nick Stefano’s about his love of two items of food. Although, I think he never ate them on the same plate that is the image the writer of the note had in mind when he wrote “Black licorice and ravioli ?!? ACKKKKKK !!!!!! Jeff Simpson

________________________________________________

Reaction to not having regular doses of FR

 

John, I know for sure I will be in the hospital within two weeks, all because of this new mysterious disease named appropriately, FR LOST-----so please do not cease completely, my old ticker can’t handle the shock. Casey--Always remember Once a Gorilla, Always a Gorilla------------1966 here!!!!

 

Ed comment:

 

Each time it is mentioned these Flash Reports have about run their course there are two, maybe three people who stir from their slumber and urge its continuance. Thus, I guess Casey, the Gorilla, is responsible for this attempt at informing and entertaining. The Gorilla is the mascot of the Pittsburg, Kansas State University. Usually, Casey spends the autumn of each year following the football team but in this past football season the Gorillas lost every game to the Chinese Covids.

________________________________________________

Former Dodger moves.

 

(We) just wanted to let you know that we have moved into a Senior apartment. Not much fun during this time of Covid. Mailing address is: 13801 East Yale Ave. apt 131, Aurora, Co

80014. Haven't lived in an apartment for over 50 years. The house is being sold to pay rent. Unbelievable how much it costs in Colorado. Have a wonderful Christmas season. Thank you for all you have done over the years. Take care. Pat Crandall—Wife of Harry Crandall 1950 Ponca City Dodgers

________________________________________________

News received on Christmas eve

 

John, it's with a heavy heart that I write to tell you that Dad passed away peacefully on Monday. His grandson Josh did a great job of taking care of Dad, although I have to admit Dad got a little combative at the end because frankly, he was ready to go and didn't want to be messed with.

 

One of my attempts to change his shirt ended with me being called a "Chicken Batter." Well, Mom and Dad only had me as a back-up scorekeeper, I'm sure. I was with him at the end, and for all the rude baseball catcalls, he went very peacefully. He was cremated in his best overalls with his Red Man and his harmonica in his pocket. No services, but he and Mom will be placed in the columbarium at Leavenworth National Cemetery in the spring. John, thanks for all your friendship with him and your hard work on the KOM league remembrance, that was a big part of Mom and Dad's later years. Here is the link to his obituary in The Star today, and please forgive me if I stated a few things not quite right:

 

www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/kansascity/name/warren-listo...

 

Warren T. Liston

 

October 31, 1926 - December 21, 2020

 

Kansas City, Kansas - Warren Thomas Liston, 94, of Kansas City, Kansas, died Monday, December 21, 2020, at the home. He was born in Kansas City, Kansas, on October 31, 1926, to Lloyd and Edna Liston. He graduated from Wyandotte High School and covered high school sports for the school's newspaper, The Pantograph, and also was a student sports reporter for The Kansas City Star. He was mobilized from the army's basic training at Camp Roberts, California, to the Philippines after the Japanese surrender and then was sent to Korea. After his military service, he attended Kansas City, Kansas, junior college and played on its baseball team.

 

He played for several teams in the Ban Johnson League and also played professional Class C and D baseball in the Kansas Oklahoma Missouri (KOM) league in Iola, Kansas; Miami, Enid and Blackwell, Oklahoma, and was active in the KOM's old-timers' reunion association. He coached several youth baseball teams and ended his baseball-playing career at the age of 61 in the Western Missouri Amateur Baseball Association. He was a reporter/photographer for The Kansas City Star's Kansas City, Kansas, office, covering local police news and sports, and later worked for The Kansas City Kansan newspaper. He married Delores Olive Sheppard in 1952 and the couple celebrated their 66th anniversary before her death in 2018. He was also predeceased by his parents; sisters Catherine, Barbara and Linda Kay; brothers Robert, Vernon, Jerry and Donnie. He is survived by his brother Richie of Kansas City, Kansas; brother Vance of Basehor, Kansas; eldest son Jeffrey and wife Jan of Boise, Idaho; daughter Jennifer and husband Greg Sherwood of Olathe, Kansas; son Dan and son Tom and his wife, Jeanne, all of the Sun Valley area, Idaho; son Alan and grandson Josh of Kansas City, Kansas, grandson Nick, and two great-grandsons. Cremation. Private services with inurnment in Leavenworth National Cemetery in the spring. The family suggests donations to The Hunger Coalition, 121 Honeysuckle St., Bellevue, ID, 83313, or thehungercoalition.org/act/donate/. Play ball!

 

Ed comment:

 

Warren Liston is a person who I could fill notebooks about. However, to those who knew him would quickly figure out any remarks made here would not do him justice. Thus, the only thing I’m going to share at this point is a note sent to Jack Morris of the Society of American Baseball Research—Necrology Section. “This one is a tough one to report. Warren was one of a kind. He and his wife would follow my travels anywhere I would appear in the Mid-America (KC metro) to talk about the KOM league. Wherever the appearance took place Warren would be in his overalls accompanied by his Red Man tobacco pouch and harmonica. He was a beat writer for the KC Star and when he left he still had a lot of typing paper remaining. He used that yellowed paper for his "Hunt and peck" messages to me, pounded out on a very old Underwood typewriter. Those letters were classic and were used in many of the paper newsletter I published for 17 years.”

 

Shortly after hearing of Liston’s death from his daughter this e-mail was received from Kansas City. It fits well with what is stated in the previous paragraph about the Liston’s attending any function dealing with the KOM league. “I am sure you know this John but just came in from getting today's KC Star and skimmed and saw obit for Warren Liston. Have not read entirely but see it says he was 94. He was in attendance that Saturday many years ago at the Red Bridge Library in KC. Mo when my son and I met you for the very first time. So sad to see.” Casey Casebolt

 

Also reading the Kansas City Star obituaries on Sunday, December 27, 2020 was former Kansas City A’s batboy from the mid-50’s, Jim Jay. He shared this comment “Saw in the STAR that Warren Liston at 94 passed away. He was a character and a good man. I liked the man.”

 

Shortly after hearing from Jim Jay a note was received from Bill Ashcraft who will be identified in this paragraph by the note he sent. What the note doesn’t reveal is he was one of the earliest Federal Narcotics agents, forerunner to the DEA, and his supervisor was my first cousin. I mention that since there is a reader of these reports who is the daughter of my first cousin which makes her my second cousin (dah). That is mentioned for it is essential to share material that keeps as many people as possible coming back each time these reports are prepared to see if there is anything, of interest, included. This is the note from Ashcraft. “John: You are probably aware of this but in the event you’re not: The KC Star’s 12-24-2020 edition reported that Warren Liston, a former KOMer had died on 12-21-2020. He was born in 1926 four years older than me. I only was with Iola for about 10 days in 1950 before being sent on to Ada (Ed note: Sooner State league) but Windy Johnson had me pitch relief in 3 games in a row and my arm was quite sore. I could never pitch even one inning without having a heckuva sore arm the next day.

 

At any rate Johnson had me come in in relief the first night I was in Iola, against Chanute. I could throw quite hard at the time and the first batter I faced was a big guy, whose identity I had no idea of, was a fellow named Newkirk and I threw him about 6 or 7 pitches, one quite close to his head and he glared at me before striking out on the next pitch over his head. The next batter was Sam ?, seems like it was Dixon (Ed note: It was), and he grounded out. When I got to the bench Warren Liston told me that the guy I had almost hit was somewhat hot headed and probably thought that I had intentionally thrown at him-so I had better watch out since I was due to bat. As it turned out we got a man on and Johnson pinch hit for me, thus averting retaliation. (Sorry to bore you with my inconsequential trivia--not about Liston of course). I only met him once but he seemed like a good guy.” Bill Ashcraft--Overland Park, Ks.

________________________________________________

Chanute player from 1950 passed away

 

Donald David Mitroff www.rosehills.com/obituaries/whittier-ca/donald-mitroff-7...

DECEMBER 17, 1928 – JANUARY 20, 2018

Donald David Mitroff - Was born on December 17, 1928 in Anaheim, CA and passed away on January 20, 2018 and is under the care of Rose Hills Memorial Park.

Ed comment:

There is nothing more frustrating, for the purposes of writing reports, than to find an obituary listed with very little information included. That is when this old guy has to “create stuff.”

 

Over the years the communication lines were open with the former infielder for the Chanute Athletics in 1950. He was with the club for a couple of weeks but loved his team and the town. This is his Sporting News player’s card. digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll3/id/152037... He was originally in the Pittsburgh Pirate organization in 1949 at Greenville, Alabama and then wound up with the Cleveland Indian organization to start the 1950 season at Daytona Beach. After 80 games in the Sunshine state he was off to play for Chanute, Kansas which was an unaffiliated club.

 

At this point I take exception to the obituary birth site listed at the start of this article. Mitroff was born on the date cited but in Lorain, Ohio not Anaheim, California. His Lorain address was 314 E.27th Street and he attended high school in Lorain and played basketball and football as well as baseball. He was a 6’ 185 athlete who was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates following his graduation from Lorain High School. During his high school days he played amateur baseball for the National Tube Company that was located in his home town.

 

For the baseball scholars who search these reports for accuracy let it be known that when he filled out his Baseball Questionnaire on July 22, 1950 for the group in San Mateo, California he listed his birth year as 1930 for obvious reasons.

Anaheim was his place of residence for the many years we corresponded. Even for a fellow who had less than three weeks in the KOM league he loved reading about the exploits of the old league and he subscribed to the newsletters for the entirety of its existence.

________________________________________________

Richard Allen Hibbeler --November 6, 1928 - April 15, 2017

hutchensfuneralhomes.com/obituary/richard-allen-hibbeler/

 

Richard A. (Dick) Hibbeler, of Florissant Missouri, fortified with the Sacraments of Holy Mother Church, Saturday, April 15, 2017

Beloved husband of Frances M. Hibbeler; dear father and father-in-law of Rick (Valerie) Hibbeler, James (Dorothy) Hibbeler, Steve (Margaret) Hibbeler and Gregg (Carrie) Hibbeler; dear grandfather of Ryan (Holly, Kelly (Tanner) Julie (Chris), Jim, Susan (Jonathan), Michael, Christine (Jon), Andrea (Steve), Eric (Rachel), Leah, Peter, Emily, Katherine, Nicholas and Sarah; great-grandfather of 11; dear brother of Mary Jane (Tim) Sandt, and the late Donald, Charles and Kenneth Hibbeler; dear brother-in-law, uncle and friend.

 

Richard was a former standout amateur athlete who played football and basketball at North side Catholic/De Andreis High School in the 1940’s. He also played professional baseball in the old New York Giants minor league system. He signed his first professional contract at the age of sixteen and was inducted into the St. Louis Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.

 

Richard retired from Southwestern Bell Telephone Company after 37 1/2 years, where he held a number of craft and supervisory positions. He was also active in the Fraternal Order of Eagles Alton Aerie #254 and participated in local community development affairs.

Memorials to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place Memphis, TN, 38105. Services will be private with his family.

________________________________________________

James Talmadge Hudson

 

www.tributearchive.com/obituaries/19250870/James-Talmadge...

 

James Talmadge Hudson, 92, died December 7, 2020. Born in Swifton, AR He was the son of the late Alvin Vohn and Lena Hancock Hudson. He was a World War II Marine Corps Veteran. Mr. Hudson was of the Lutheran faith. He enjoyed baseball and played professionally in the minor league for the New York Yankees.

 

Surviving is his wife, Carolyn Lane Hudson of Cheraw, SC, sons, James Hudson of Cheraw, SC , Mark Hudson of Palm Harbor, FL, four grandchildren and three great grandchildren.

There will be a private family visitation and service.

 

Note

 

James Hudson started with Independence, Kansas in 1948 and was then sent to Fond du Lac in the Wisconsin State league. When obtaining his release from the Yankee farm team he was signed by the New York Giants and sent to Chanute. His Sporting News player card didn’t reveal his Chanute playing days. digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll3/id/89996/... During the “revival” days of the KOM league Hudson drove to some of the KOM league cities Interestingly, he made the trip to Chanute but not Independence. He was a long term supporter of the KOM League Remembered newsletter that preceded the Flash Reports.

 

Ed comment:

 

This report carries the obituaries of Richard Hibbeler, James Hudson and Vincent Speranza who were all members of the 1948 Chanute Giants if but for fleeting moments. Of the young men who appeared on that New York Giant affiliated club, managed by Al Smith, who stopped Joe DiMaggio’s 56 game hitting streak, Daniel Dondero, Danny Bass, Richard Nolte, Anthony La Croix and Robert Harrison survive. In one of the best kept secrets one of those five guys later played in the major leagues. Yes, Robert Harrison made a quick pass through Chanute that season on his way to the Sooner State league.

________________________________________________

Vincent James Speranza

patch.com/connecticut/glastonbury/classifieds/announcemen...

 

Vincent “Gizzy” James Speranza died peacefully with his daughter by his side on January 19, 2019 at the age of 89. He had been under the care of Salmon Brook Center and Masonicare Hospice in Glastonbury, CT.

 

Gizzy is survived by his son James Anthony Speranza of Denmark, his daughter Lynn Michele “Shelly” Ruff and husband David of Fuquay Varina, N.C. and his granddaughter Sarah Speranza of Denmark along with several nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents Rocco and Nicholetta Speranza and siblings Carmelo Speranza, Lillian Speranza (Frascatore) and Fortunata Speranza (Caputo).

 

Gizzy was born on June 27, 1929 in Palmi, Italy to Rocco and Nicholetta Speranza. His family immigrated to Stamford, CT in 1930. He graduated from Stamford High School where he had been active in track, gymnastics and baseball. Gizzy’s love of baseball and natural ability as a pitcher led to his being drafted by the Brooklyn Dodgers AA team. His baseball career was cut short when he voluntarily joined the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War. He was stationed in Okinawa.

 

Gizzy loved to travel. He logged thousands of miles driving across the U.S. visiting National Parks even making it as far as Alaska. He made many stops along the way to visit family and friends. These visits were always filled with much joy, laughter and home-cooked meals. He also made many trips abroad. He enjoyed visiting his son and granddaughter in Denmark. He was also able to return to Italy to visit his birthplace and reconnect with family.

 

Over the years Gizzy had planted roots in Naples, FL and Fort Collins, CO, before settling in Glastonbury, CT in 2003 so he could live close to his daughter. Gizzy’s love of sports and health remained a priority for him. Wherever he resided he quickly joined the local gym and made many new life-long friends. His days were spent enjoying time with family and friends, caring for his “grand-dogs”, taking long walks around town, going to the gym and of course, satisfying his abundant appetite for good food and conversation.

 

Gizzy lived his life the way he wanted, carefree and happy and always tried to pass that attitude on to everyone he knew. He touched the lives of so many people in such positive ways, is greatly loved and will be momentously missed by all who knew him.

 

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Masonicare of Connecticut.

 

I didn’t know about this when it happened. He had time with two KOM teams. When he was in the KOM league his birthplace was listed as Calibria, Italy and that he was from Stamford, Conn.

 

Ed comments:

 

Speranza made a number of stops in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas during his career that is cited in the following link. digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll3/id/141700...

There is a possible conflict on his place of birth listed in his obituary and the one placed on his Sporting News player card. One shows he was from Palmi and the other has Calibria, Italy, I’m going to assume he was born in Palmi and moved 157 miles north to Calibria and from there his parents brought him to Stamford. CT.

_____________________________________________________________

Len Wiesner 1949 Independence Yankees

 

Wiesner, Leonard George, age 91, was baptized into the hope of Christ's resurrection, Saturday, December 5, 2020. www.schrader.com/obituary/leonard-wiesner

 

Leonard was the beloved husband of the late Elizabeth Wiesner (nee Gray), who preceded him in death in May 1988; the dear father of Barbara Wiesner, Mary (Rich) Eberhardt and Richard (Marie) Wiesner. He was also the loving grandfather (“G-Pa”) to Kaitlyn, William, Benjamin (Lisa) and Elizabeth Wiesner, Christopher (Amy) Eberhardt and Melissa Eberhardt; great grandfather to Jake and Ryan Eberhardt.

 

He was born and raised in St. Louis, a son of the late Joseph and Marie (nee Lindewirth) Wiesner. Beloved brother of the late Laverne (Ralph) Fioretti, late Joseph (Elaine) Wiesner, late Marian Duffy, late Loretta (Jake) Marquart, late Joni (Jim) Budde and Delores (Robert) Chapie. Dear uncle, cousin and friend.

 

After high school Leonard played professional baseball in the New York Yankees farm system, until serving in the United States Army during the Korean Conflict. He received his bachelor's degree from St. Louis University in 1958, and retired as an accountant after 30 years with Monsanto. He was an avid lifelong fan of the New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals. He also helped establish the original Metro Collegiate Baseball League in the 1980’s. In 1994, he was inducted into the St. Louis Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame.

 

Services: Funeral Mass at Christ, Prince of Peace Catholic Church, Manchester, Monday, December 14, 2020, 11:00 a.m. Interment Holy Cross Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Catholic Charities. Visitation at the church, Monday, 10-11 a.m. A service of the SCHRADER Funeral Home and Crematory. Friends may sign the family's on-line guestbook at Schrader.com.

 

Ed comment:

 

Wiesner spent a lot of time being injured during his days with the Independence Yankees in 1949 and Joplin Miners in 1950. In spite of that he was a very good hitter and loved remembering those days playing with Bob Wiesler, Mickey Mantle, Steve Kraly and Lou Skizas. Over the last few years, at this time, he would make his annual Christmas call to KOM league headquarters and ask “How many of us are still left?” Sadly, each year the number decreased and this year he missed his call by a couple of weeks.

________________________________________________________________________

Thank You John!!!

 

Thank You for all the KOM memories. I can’t imagine anyone doing more research than what you have done on anything It makes me wonder how many books all your reports would fill…..

Ed reply:

 

Books are easy to write. Selling them is the tough task. With my Flash Repots they would easily produce a half dozen good size books a year. The books may be good size but they wouldn’t be good sellers.

 

The stuff that might sell are the true stories that I know bur won’t reveal. Most of the old ball players who told them to me are now deceased but they have survivors who wouldn’t benefit one iota from them being printed. Bruce Orser in New York

____________________________________________________________________________

The Cherokee Kid returns

 

For those who subscribed to the paper newsletter that went all over everywhere and back for over a decade, the name of Billy Jack Cornsilk was very much in prominence. He came into this world in 1933 at Stilwell, Oklahoma and nineteen years later he was pitching for Boyd Bartley’s Ponca City Dodgers.

 

Cornsilk reunited with many of his former Ponca City teammates at the huge KOM league reunion, at Carthage, Mo. in 1998. That was the last time I ever saw him but he stayed in touch until recent years. For about a half-dozen years nothing was heard from him until the day after Christmas. When the telephone ran on that day I had a feeling a former ballplayer was calling even though I was addressed by a different first name. When that got sorted out Cornsilk said that he had recently moved to be near his son in the Sacramento area. That came about after he lost his wife.

 

When going through his “most treasured” belongings (I kid) he found a copy of the KOM League Remembered newsletter from a different century. He looked for a telephone number of the editor of that paper and fortunately he found that the person responsible for printing it hadn’t had a change of numbers. A very nice conversation ensued and now Cornsilk is on the distribution list of these reports as well as all the previous ones he can handle. He also asked for an update on the status of his former teammates and that has already been shared. He is well down memory lane, by now, as he goes over the names of those who still share this planet with him as well as most of his former teammates who don’t.

 

One of the most memorable stories of Cornsilk is when the paper newsletters were sent. Somehow, Furman Bisher, the legendary sports writer for the Atlanta Constitution-Journal, used Cornsilk’s name at the close of an article. That reference was noticed by a reader in the Atlanta area who was shocked to see Cornsilk mentioned. Immediately, he placed a call to Bisher and asked how he knew of Cornsilk. Bisher admitted he had only seen that name by reading a newsletter published by someone in Missouri. The caller, Ron Minnich, wanted to know if there was any way that person could be contacted and Bisher called Yours truly to see if it was okay to release the contact information. Of course, I was thrilled, for at that juncture the search was for former players was in high gear. So, Billy Cornsilk has been a valuable asset in keeping the KOM league memory alive and it is great he will be reading these reports once again.

 

For anyone wishing to know the stops on the baseball journey of Cornsilk this link provides it: digital.la84.org/digital/collection/p17103coll3/id/44591/...

______________________________________________________________________________

This is a two-prong report—this last for 2020 and the first for 2021 as the KOM League enters its 75th year of being in the hearts and minds of a few people.

 

A recent ponderance of mine (about a year old) has been that genes store fractal memories, both relating to evolution re all the steps back to our genetic ancestors origins and also re experiences. It seems to me that fractals are a type of language and everything, material and immaterial can be represented by them in 'form'. I think that it is these fractal memories stored in the genes that direct evolution. I think it could also explain things of a pseudoscientific nature such as alleged 'past life' memories and transplant memories etc.

Meanwhile re 'evidence of fractal memory' in animals

Bees create hives which are mathematically correct structures and 'fractals'. I am suggesting that the knowledge of the mathematical requirements of building the hive is stored in their genes as 'fractal memory'. If not 'genetic memory' then how does this knowledge pass from parent to offspring?

Most animals have innate knowledge...how does 'innate' work if not via the genes? Innate knowledge must surely be stored as memory in the genes? My uneducated explanation (and please excuse if me if this is old news and I'm stating the obvious) is that evolution starts with the simplest fractal and as things became more complex, so did fractals. I beleive all living things have stored within their genes the genetic fractal memory of every earlier fractal development that their species went through. I believe all things can in the end be presented in fractals. It's a language if you like. Everything in this universe, material and not can be represented in form by a fractal. Thus fractal memory is 'everything' memory. Events etc. Memory of our genetic ancestors. I think that the fractal gene memory that I speak of here is what prompts evolutionary change. Ie. The genes are aware of the events of the hosts life and make changes accordingly for the benefit of the offspring. Note the 'awareness' is not conscious awareness as we understand it but the same type of 'automatic' functioning we see in robots which make 'corrections' to their behaviour when they bump into things.

We 'humans' have problems seeing events in terms of maths or 'fractals' because of our 'perception' but in reality it is just 'maths', so not all that bizarre that the gene which is a fine tuned computer can make adjustments in it's 'output' based on the 'input' . Think of this entire world as a digital programme and it all makes sense. Evolution is a software update and nothing more than that.Memory of our genetic ancestors. We discuss a model of memory for visual form which treats the memory 'trace' as a set of procedures for reconstructing earlier visual experience. The

procedures, Barnsley's Iterated Function System (IFS), construct an image from a collection of operators (affine transformations). From this perspective, remembering and imagining are processes whose dynamics are captured by

the iterative rules. Changes in memory for visual experience are described as changes in the parameters and weights of the reconstruction operators. The model is used to discuss known phenomena and effects in the empirical literature on memory for visual form. Fractals, as all present know, are irregular geometric objects that yield detail at all scales. Unlike Euclidean, differentiable, objects that smooth out when zoomed into, fractals continue to reveal features as more closely regarded. Fractals also have "self-similarity"

which, in one meaning refers to the presence of parts that resemble the whole, or to the continual repetition of a feature. Benoit Mandelbrot (1983) not only invented the term fractal, but advanced the position that fractal geometry is the geometry of nature. Eliot Porter, the nature photographer,

upon reading Gleick's (1988) account of Mandelbrot's work, realized he had been taking pictures of fractals in nature for decades. To promote the point, he collaborated with Gleick on a collection of photographs for a book titled Nature's Chaos (Porter & Gleick, 1990). The slides shown here are

samples from that book. From a Darwinian perspective, we propose that our sensory receptors evolved in the presence of fractal objects, bathed in and powerfully shaped by them. It makes sense to us, then, that fractal geometry should be adopted in the study of perception and memory for

visual form (cf. Gilden, Schmuckler, & Clayton, 1993). Yet contemporary psychophysical studies of perception are dominated by Euclidean measures, and modern theories of visual form, such as Biederman's (1987) object recognition theory, have Euclidean objects (spheres, cubes, etc.) as

primitives ("geons"). A general model. We first present a general, abstract, model of memory for visual form from this perspective, and then consider a more specific version (see figure 1). We assume, first, that memory is not a passive list of attributes, but rather is a set of mental procedures. These

procedures, when activated, allow a reconstruction of a semblance of the original experience. There are two classes of memory dynamics; those involved in remembering and imagining, and those involved in forgetting. These are very different procedures. The first is initiated by some query of

memory, arising internally or externally. It is relatively fast and interacts with ongoing cognitive demands and simultaneous visual experience. The second process, altering memory, is the result of subsequent experience. It acts to alter procedure parameters.

It has been demonstrated that higher order recurrent neural networks exhibit an underlying fractal attractor as an artifact of their dynamics. These fractal attractors offer a very efficient mechanism to encode visual memories in a neural substrate, since even a simple twelve weight network can encode a very large set of different images. The main problem in this memory model, which so far has remained unaddressed, is how to train the networks to learn these different attractors. Following other neural training methods this paper proposes a gradient descent method to learn the attractors. The method is based on an error function which examines the effects of the current network transform on the desired fractal attractor. It is tested across a bank of different target fractal attractors and at different noise levels. The results show positive performance across three error measures.

 

www.vanderbilt.edu/AnS/psychology/cogsci/clayton/papers/C...

Source: Wikipedia...

 

Mary Pinchot Meyer (October 14 1920, - October 12, 1964), was a Washington DC socialite, painter, former wife of CIA official Cord Meyer and close friend of US president John F. Kennedy who was noted for her great beauty and social skills.

 

Meyer's murder two days before her 44th birthday in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington D.C. during the fall of 1964 would later stir speculation relating to Kennedy's presidency and assassination. Nina Burleigh in her 1998 biography wrote, "Mary Meyer was an enigmatic woman in life, and in death her real personality lurks just out of view."

 

Mary Pinchot was the daughter of Amos Pinchot, a wealthy lawyer and a founder of the Progressive party who had helped fund the socialist magazine "The Masses". Her mother was Pinchot's second wife Ruth, a journalist who worked for magazines such as "The Nation" and "The New Republic". Mary was raised at the family's Grey Towers home in Milford, Pennsylvania where as a child she met left-wing intellectuals such as Mabel Dodge, Louis Brandeis, Robert M. La Follette, Sr. and Harold L. Ickes. Mary attended Brearley School and Vassar College, where she became interested in communism. She dated William Attwood in 1938 and while with him at a dance held at Choate Rosemary Hall she first met John F. Kennedy.

 

She left Vassar and became a journalist, writing for the United Press and Mademoiselle. As a pacifist and member of the American Labor Party she came under scrutiny by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

 

Marriage with Cord Meyer

Mary met Cord Meyer in 1944 when he was a US Marine Corps lieutenant who had lost his left eye because of shrapnel injuries received in combat. The two had similar pacifist views and beliefs in world government and married on 19 April 1945. That spring they both attended the UN Conference on International Organization in San Francisco, during which the United Nations was founded, Cord as an aide of Harold Stassen and Mary as a reporter for a newspaper syndication service. She later worked for a time as an editor for Atlantic Monthly. Their eldest child Quentin was born in late 1945, followed by Michael in 1947, after which Mary became a housewife although she attended classes at the Art Students League of New York.

 

Cord Meyer became president of the United World Federalists in May 1947 and its membership doubled. Albert Einstein was an enthusiastic supporter and fundraiser. Mary Meyer wrote for the organization's journal. In 1950 their third child Mark was born and they moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts. Meanwhile her husband began to re-evaluate his notions of world government as members of the American Communist Party infiltrated the international organizations he had founded. It is unknown when he first began secretly working with the Central Intelligence Agency but in 1951 Allen Dulles approached Cord Meyer, he became an employee of the CIA and was soon a "principal operative" of Operation Mockingbird, a covert operation meant to sway the print and broadcast media. Mary may also have done some work for the CIA during this time but her tendency towards spur-of-the-moment love affairs reportedly made the agency wary of her.

 

With her husband's CIA appointment they moved to Washington D.C. and became highly visible members of Georgetown society. Their friends and acquaintances included Joseph Alsop, Katharine Graham, Clark Clifford and Washington Post reporter James Truitt along with his wife, noted artist Anne Truitt. Their social circle also included CIA-affiliated people such as Richard M. Bissell, Jr., high ranking counter-intelligence official James Angleton and Mary and Frank Wisner, Meyer's boss at CIA. In 1953 Senator Joseph McCarthy publicly accused Cord Meyer of being a communist and the FBI was reported to have looked into Mary's political past. Allen Dulles and Frank Wisner aggressively defended Meyer and he remained with the CIA. However, by early 1954 Mary's husband became unhappy with his CIA career and used contacts from his covert operations in Operation Mockingbird to approach several New York publishers for a job but was rebuffed. During the summer of 1954 John F. Kennedy and his wife Jackie Kennedy bought a house not far from where the Meyers lived, Mary and Jackie became friends and "they went on walks together." By the end of 1954 Cord Meyer was still with the CIA and often in Europe, running Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty and managing millions of dollars of US government funds worldwide to support progressive-seeming foundations and organizations.

 

One of Mary's close friends and classmates from Vassar was Cicely d'Autremont, who married James Angleton. In 1955 Meyer's sister Antoinette (Tony) married Ben Bradlee of The Washington Post. On 18 December 1956 the Meyers' middle son Michael was hit by a car near their house and killed at the age of nine. Although this tragedy brought Mary and Cord closer together for a time, Mary filed for divorce in 1958. Her divorce petition alleged "extreme cruelty, mental in nature, which seriously injured her health, destroyed her happiness, rendered further cohabitation unendurable and compelled the parties to separate."

 

Friendship with JFK

Mary and her two surviving sons remained in the family home. She began painting again in a converted garage studio at the home of her sister Tony and her husband Ben Bradlee. She also started a close relationship with abstract-minimalist painter Kenneth Noland and grew a friendship with Robert Kennedy who had moved into his brother's house after John and Jackie Kennedy left in 1960. Nina Burleigh in her book "A Very Private Woman" writes that after the divorce Meyer became "a well-bred ingenue out looking for fun and getting in trouble along the way." "Mary was bad," a friend recalled.

 

Burleigh claims James Angleton tapped Mary Meyer's telephone after she left her husband. Meanwhile Angleton often visited the family home and took her sons on fishing outings. Mary visited John F. Kennedy at the White House in October 1961 and their relationship became intimate. Mary told Ann and James Truitt she was keeping a diary.

 

In 1983 former Harvard University psychology professor Timothy Leary claimed that in the spring of 1962 Meyer, who according to her biographer Burleigh "wore manners and charm like a second skin", told him she was taking part in a plan to avert worldwide nuclear war by convincing powerful male members of the Washington establishment to take mind-altering drugs, which would presumably lead them to conclude the Cold War was meaningless. Meyer said she had shared in this plan with at least seven other Washington socialite friends who held similar political views and were trying to supply LSD to a small circle of high ranking government officials (however, Leary's account is disputed by several writers, who point out that he wrote many other autobiographical books between 1962 and 1983 without ever mentioning her).

 

Mary Meyer and John F Kennedy reportedly had "about 30 trysts" and at least one author has claimed she brought marijuana or LSD to almost all of these meetings. In January 1963 Philip Graham disclosed the Kennedy-Meyer affair to a meeting of newspaper editors but his claim was not reported by the news media. Leary later claimed Mary influenced Kennedy's "views on nuclear disarmament and rapprochement with Cuba." In an interview with Nina Burleigh, Kennedy aide Meyer Feldman said, "I think he might have thought more of her than some of the other women and discussed things that were on his mind, not just social gossip." Burleigh wrote, "Mary might actually have been a force for peace during some of the most frightening years of the cold war..."

 

In his biography Flashbacks Leary claimed he had a call from Mary soon after the Kennedy assassination during which she sobbed and said, "They couldn't control him any more. He was changing too fast. He was learning too much... They'll cover everything up. I gotta come see you. I'm scared. I'm afraid." During the summer of 1964 Meyer reportedly told friends she thought someone had gotten into her house while she was not there and later told a friend from Vasser, historian Elizabeth Eisenstein, "she thought she had seen somebody leaving as she walked in.&quot

 

Murder

On 12 October 1964, eleven months after John F. Kennedy's assassination and two weeks after the Warren Commission report was made public, Mary finished a painting and went for a walk along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal towpath in Georgetown. Mechanic Henry Wiggins was trying to fix a car on Canal Road and heard a woman cry out, "Someone help me, someone help me." Wiggins heard two gunshots and ran to a low wall looking upon the path where he saw "a black man in a light jacket, dark slacks, and a dark cap standing over the body of a white woman."

 

Meyer's body had two bullet wounds, one at the back of the head and another in her heart. An FBI forensics expert later said “dark haloes on the skin around both entry wounds suggested they had been fired at close-range, possibly point-blank”.

 

Minutes later a disheveled, soaking wet African-American man named Raymond Crump was arrested near the murder scene. No gun was ever found and Crump was never linked to any gun of the type used to murder Mary Meyer. Newspaper reports described her former husband only as either an author or government official and did not mention Kennedy, although many journalists apparently were aware of Meyer's past marriage to a high ranking CIA official and her friendship with Kennedy.

 

When Crump came to trial, judge Howard Corcoran ruled Mary Meyer's private life could not be disclosed in the courtroom. Corcoran had recently been appointed by president Lyndon Baines Johnson. Mary’s background was also kept from Dovey Roundtree, Crump's lawyer, who later recalled she could find out almost nothing about the murder victim: "It was as if she existed only on the towpath on the day she was murdered." Crump was acquitted of all charges on 29 July 1965 and the murder remains unsolved (Crump went on to what has been described as a "horrific" life of crime).

 

Diary

In March 1976 James Truitt told the National Enquirer Meyer was having an affair with Kennedy when he was assassinated. Truitt said Meyer had told his wife Ann she was keeping a diary (which some sources have described as a sketchbook with some written text) and had asked her to retrieve it "if anything ever happened" to her. Ann Truitt, who was living in Tokyo when Meyer was murdered, called both James Angleton and Mary's brother in law Ben Bradlee at home and asked him if he had found the diary. Bradley later said, "We didn't start looking until the next morning, when Tony [Mary's sister] and I walked around the corner a few blocks to Mary's house. It was locked, as we had expected, but when we got inside, we found Jim Angleton, and to our complete surprise he told us he, too, was looking for Mary's diary."

 

Angleton said he knew about Mary's intimate friendship with Kennedy and was looking for the diary and anything else which might have information about the affair. Later at Mary's art studio by the Bradlee home Ben and Antoinette again found Angleton, trying to pick a padlock. After he left, Antoinette found the diary and many letters in a metal box. These were given to Angleton, who later claimed he burned the diary, in which he said Mary Meyer wrote she and Kennedy had taken LSD before "they made love." However, Bradlee wrote they later learned Angleton had not burned the diary: Bradlee's wife Tony got it back from Angleton and burned the document herself while Ann Truitt watched. Those who did read the diary reportedly said it confirmed Meyer's intimate friendship with Kennedy but gave no suggestion it contained any information about his assassination.

 

Cord Meyer's later statements about the murder

Cord Meyer left the CIA in 1977. In his autobiography Facing Reality: From World Federalism to the CIA he wrote, "I was satisfied by the conclusions of the police investigation that Mary had been the victim of a sexually motivated assault by a single individual and that she had been killed in her struggle to escape." However his former personal assistant Carol Delaney later claimed, "Mr. Meyer didn't for a minute think that Ray Crump had murdered his wife or that it had been an attempted rape. But, being an Agency man, he couldn't very well accuse the CIA of the crime, although the murder had all the markings of an in-house rubout."

 

In February 2001 writer C. David Heymann asked Cord Meyer about Mary Pinchot Meyer's murder and he replied, "My father died of a heart attack the same year Mary was killed. It was a bad time." When asked who had murdered Mary Pinchot Meyer the retired CIA official, six weeks before his own death from lymphoma, reportedly "hissed" back, "The same sons of bitches that killed John F. Kennedy."

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C & O Canal from Chain Bridge at the base of the Palisades