View allAll Photos Tagged TRANSMUTATION
Hypnotic Landscape.
Sailing perplesso experience boundless doména,
zamislili spasmodic phenomena συναρπαστικό trees,
exquisitely témoigné colors embodied speculazioni,
parsimoniously percepties recital merveilleux embeddable tones,
симболи deficiency ausgedrückt embodiments laubensbekenntnis ,
excelsior час atmosphere ethereal συνείδηση moves,
measureless vzpomínky glorified to forbavselse wine,
bloeiende pleasures merrier недавно clothed,
as buoyant emozioni conciliare thy expanderande ground,
to αρμονία echoes besought thee plošina survey,
whose onderscheiden территорий thrill thy στιγμιαίος cares,
on délicat foreign milliaria meadows swaying perasaan suka cita leaves,
wandelen thee รสเผ็ดร้อน forms drūzmējās on μεγαλείο rise,
thy perpetuus fantasia path exceedingly gezwollen,
vertiefung bounteousness scattered cambiando hues cried,
thee simboleggiata transmutations μυθικός avenues sweet,
on impeditis winds supplichevole plants thy perspective navijáky,
αντιθέσεις curvilinear vigorously rectilinear digymell rain,
thy tendensen of distinguished spektrum stylistic beschränkt,
as bloemlezingen exhibitτόνισε cultures past,
överföra calligraphy conflagrationes abstract perspectives 芸術 .
Steve.D.Hammond.
Chinese opera performer taking a parade around the festival venue, paying respect to the God & Goddess of Spirits prior to their first performance.
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The Ghost Festival, also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Yu Lan is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday celebrated by Chinese in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (鬼月), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm.
Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (in spring) and Chung Yeung Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, on Ghost Day, the deceased are believed to visit the living.
On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the realm of the living are open and both Taoists and Buddhists would perform rituals to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Intrinsic to the Ghost Month is ancestor worship, where traditionally the filial piety of descendants extends to their ancestors even after their deaths.
Activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors
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More images of the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival
More Chinese Temples images here:
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Photo shot with Photo shot with Olympus E-PL2
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華人民間則多採佛教說法，無論是中元盛會，或是各種類型的超度法會與齋醮，多以佛教形式塑造大士爺神像：“頂生二角、青面獠牙，高大威武，頭上還有一尊觀世音菩薩佛像，象徵其代表慈悲的觀音大士”。
大士爺的造型也因為不同習俗而有所不同。應為造價不菲，有些比較小型的法會選擇用畫像代替，心誠責靈, 原意還是一樣的.
The Lord of All Spirits is said to be a second self of the All Merciful Kwan Yin, despite his chilling looks, he is actually the "good guy" who keeps the wandering spirits in line, and to oversee the smooth transition of events at the Hungry Ghosts Festival venue.
This paper crafted statue can reach up to 20 feet tall, it will be burnt at the end of the festival, symbolizing his return to the heavenly realm.
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The Ghost Festival, also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Yu Lan is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday celebrated by Chinese in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (鬼月), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm.
Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (in spring) and Chung Yeung Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, on Ghost Day, the deceased are believed to visit the living.
On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the realm of the living are open and both Taoists and Buddhists would perform rituals to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Intrinsic to the Ghost Month is ancestor worship, where traditionally the filial piety of descendants extends to their ancestors even after their deaths.
Activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors
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Follow my rediscovery of the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
For my past visits to the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival
More Chinese Temples images here:
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Photograph above:
MV PATRICK BLACKETT (IMO: 9762302) arriving at HM Naval Base, Portsmouth this afternoon. The vessel is a Offshore Supply Ship that was built in 2022 (newbuilding) and is sailing under the flag of the United Kingdom. Her carrying capacity is 150t DWT and her current draught is reported to be 2.3 metres. Her length overall (LOA) is 40 metres and her width is 8 metres. Royal Marine and Royal Navy personnel can be seen aboard her today and lots of Royal Marine personnel were about to welcome her to Portsmouth.
Photograph Source: Digital Expression UK
NEWS;
Royal Navy's new advanced technology testbed 'XV Patrick Blackett' arrived at HM Naval Base, Portsmouth this afternoon. It is reported that the vessel is due to have her Commissioning Ceremony on Friday.
WHO WAS PATRICK BLACKETT?
Patrick Maynard Stuart Blackett, Baron Blackett OM CH FRS
(18 November 1897 – 13 July 1974) was a British experimental physicist known for his work on cloud chambers, cosmic rays, and paleo-magnetism, winning the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1948. In 1925 he became the first person to prove that radioactivity could cause the nuclear transmutation of one chemical element to another. He also made a major contribution in World War II advising on military strategy and developing operational research. His left-wing views saw an outlet in third world development and in influencing policy in the Labour Government of the 1960s
Early life and education
Blackett was born in Kensington, London, the son of Arthur Stuart Blackett, a stockbroker, and his wife Caroline Maynard. His younger sister was the psychoanalyst Marion Milner. His paternal grandfather Rev. Henry Blackett, brother of Edmund Blackett the Australian architect, was for many years vicar of Croydon. His maternal grandfather Charles Maynard was an officer in the Royal Artillery at the time of the Indian Mutiny. The Blackett family lived successively at Kensington, Kenley, Woking and Guildford, Surrey, where Blackett went to preparatory school. His main hobbies were model aeroplanes and crystal radio. When he went for interview for entrance to the Royal Naval College, Osborne, Isle of Wight, Charles Rolls had completed his cross-channel flight the previous day and Blackett who had tracked the flight on his crystal set was able to expound lengthily on the subject. He was accepted and spent two years there before moving on to Dartmouth where he was "usually head of his class".
In August 1914 on the outbreak of World War I Blackett was assigned to active service as a midshipman. He was transferred to the Cape Verde Islands on HMS Carnarvon and was present at the Battle of the Falkland Islands. He was then transferred to HMS Barham and saw much action at the Battle of Jutland. While on HMS Barham, Blackett was co-inventor of a gunnery device on which the Admiralty took out a patent. In 1916 he applied to join the RNAS but his application was refused. In October that year he became a sub-lieutenant on HMS P17 on Dover patrol, and in July 1917 he was posted to HMS Sturgeon in the Harwich Force under Admiral Tyrwhitt. Blackett was particularly concerned by the poor quality of gunnery in the force compared with that of the enemy and of his own previous experience, and started to read science textbooks. He was promoted to lieutenant in May 1918, but had decided to leave the Navy. Then, in January 1919, the Admiralty sent the officers whose training had been interrupted by the war to the University of Cambridge for a course of general duties. On his first night at Magdalene College, Cambridge, he met Kingsley Martin and Geoffrey Webb, later recalling that he had never before, in his naval training, heard intellectual conversation. Blackett was impressed by the prestigious Cavendish Laboratory, and left the Navy to study mathematics and physics at Cambridge.
Career and research
After graduating from Magdalene College in 1921, Blackett spent ten years working at the Cavendish Laboratory as an experimental physicist with Ernest Rutherford and in 1923 became a fellow of King's College, Cambridge, a position he held until 1933.
Rutherford had found out that the nucleus of the nitrogen atom could be disintegrated by firing fast alpha particles into nitrogen. He asked Blackett to use a cloud chamber to find visible tracks of this disintegration, and by 1925, he had taken 23,000 photographs showing 415,000 tracks of ionized particles. Eight of these were forked, and this showed that the nitrogen atom-alpha particle combination had formed an atom of fluorine, which then disintegrated into an isotope of oxygen 17 and a proton. Blackett published the results of his experiments in 1925. He thus became the first person to deliberately transmute one element into another.
Blackett spent some time in 1924–1925 at Göttingen, Germany, working with James Franck on atomic spectra. In 1932, working with Giuseppe Occhialini, he devised a system of Geiger counters which took photographs only when a cosmic ray particle traversed the chamber. They found 500 tracks of high energy cosmic ray particles in 700 automatic exposures. In 1933, Blackett discovered fourteen tracks which confirmed the existence of the positron and revealed the now instantly recognisable opposing spiral traces of positron/electron pair production. This work and that on annihilation radiation made him one of the first and leading experts on anti-matter.
That year he moved to Birkbeck, University of London, as professor of Physics for four years. Then in 1937 he went to the Victoria University of Manchester where he was elected to the Lang-worthy Professorship and created a major international research laboratory. The Blackett Memorial Hall and Blackett lecture theatre at the University of Manchester were named after him.
In 1947, Blackett introduced a theory to account for the Earth's magnetic field as a function of its rotation, with the hope that it would unify both the electromagnetic force and the force of gravity. He spent a number of years developing high-quality magnetometers to test his theory, and eventually found it to be without merit. His work on the subject, however, led him into the field of geophysics, where he eventually helped process data relating to paleo-magnetism and helped to provide strong evidence for continental drift.
In 1948 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, for his investigation of cosmic rays using his invention of the counter-controlled cloud chamber.
Blackett was appointed head of the Physics Department of Imperial College London in 1953 and retired in July 1963. The Physics department building of Imperial College, the Blackett Laboratory is named in his honour.
In 1957 Blackett gave the presidential address ("Technology and World Advancement") to the British Association meeting in Dublin. In 1965 he was invited to deliver the MacMillan Memorial Lecture to the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland. He chose the subject "Continental Drift"
World War II and operational research
In 1935 Blackett was invited to join the Aeronautical Research Committee chaired by Sir Henry Tizard. The committee was effective pressing for the early installation of Radar for air defence. In the early part of World War II, Blackett served on various committees and spent time at the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) Farnborough, where he made a major contribution to the design of the Mark XIV bomb sight which allowed bombs to be released without a level bombing run beforehand. In 1940–41 Blackett served on the MAUD Committee which concluded that an atomic bomb was feasible. He disagreed with the committee's conclusion that Britain could produce an atomic bomb by 1943, and recommended that the project should be discussed with the Americans. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1933 and awarded its Royal Medal in 1940.
In August 1940 Blackett became scientific adviser to Lieutenant General Sir Frederick Pile, Commander in Chief of Anti-Aircraft Command and thus began the work that resulted in the field of study known as operational research (OR). He was director of Operational Research with the Admiralty from 1942 to 1945, and his work with E. J. Williams improved the survival odds of convoys, presented counter-intuitive but correct recommendations for the armour-plating of aircraft and achieved many other successes. His aim, he said, was to find numbers on which to base strategy, not gusts of emotion. During the war he criticised the assumptions in Lord Cherwell's de-housing paper and sided with Tizard who argued that fewer resources should go to RAF Bomber Command for the area bombing offensive and more to the other armed forces, as his studies had shown the ineffectiveness of the bombing strategies, as opposed to the importance of fighting of the German U-boats, which were heavily affecting the war effort with their sinking of merchant ships. In this opinion he chafed against the existing military authority and was cut out of various circles of communications. However, after the war, the Allied Strategic Bombing Survey proved Blackett correct.
Politics
Blackett became friends with Kingsley Martin, later editor of the New Statesman, while an undergraduate and became committed to the left. Politically he identified himself as a socialist, and often campaigned on behalf of the Labour Party. In the late 1940s, Blackett became known for his radical political opinions, which included his belief that Britain ought not develop atomic weapons. He was considered too far to the left for the Labour Government 1945–1951 to employ, and he returned to academic life. His internationalism found expression in his strong support for India. There in 1947 he met Jawaharlal Nehru, who sought his advice on the research and development needs of the Indian armed forces and for the next 20 years he was a frequent visitor and advisor on military and civil science. These visits deepened his concern for the underprivileged and the poor. He was convinced that the problem could be solved by applying science and technology and he used his scientific prestige to try to persuade scientists that one of their first duties was to use their skill to ensure a decent life for all mankind. Before underdevelopment became a popular issue he proposed in a presidential address to the British Association that Britain should devote 1% of its national income to the economic improvement of the third world and he was later one of the prime movers in the foundation of the Overseas Development Institute. He was the senior member of a group of scientists which met regularly to discuss scientific and technological policy during the 13 years when the Labour Party was out of office, and this group became influential when Harold Wilson became leader of the Party. Blackett's ideas led directly to the creation of the Ministry of Technology as soon as the Wilson government was formed and he insisted that the first priority was revival of the computer industry. He did not enter open politics, but worked for a year as a civil servant. He remained deputy chairman of the Minister's Advisory Council throughout the administration's life, and was also personal scientific adviser to the Minister.
The complex make-up takes many hours to complete before the participant can transmute into his ritual deity.
Done in Ai, Finalized in Photoshop
Inspired by and Reimagined
"From the ashes of industry, he rises unbroken."
Forged in fire and scarred by steel, the Ashborn Revenant walks the ruins of a world that once thrived. His gaze burns like molten embers, cutting through the smoke and sparks of collapsed empires. Every spike, every brand, every fracture of flesh tells the story of torment transmuted into power. He does not serve—he endures. He does not forgive—he becomes the flame.
Una de las muchas deidades que aparecen por los cielos de Guatemala. / One of the many deities that appear through the skies of Guatemala.
(DINA1 666) 1. Continue with the simple breathing exercise you are now doing. It is of value to youin producing inner alignment and the harmonising of your bodies.2. Then, by an act of the will, withdraw the consciousness into the head and there visualise the inner radiant sun, formed by the merging of the lesser life of the personalitywith the radiant light in your soul.At the very centre of this life see the Self,the inner Christ or Buddha.Then focus your thought, without effort or strength, in thiscentre.(DINA1 714) Stage I. Little Chelaship. This stage is so definitely exoteric that many people have left it far behind. The first indication that a man has reached that stage (from the angle of the Master) comes when the "light flashes out
" in some one life; thereby the attention of the Master is attracted to the person. It might be said that the preface to the Master's interest falls into four parts and it is only when all four are found present together and simultaneously that this happens:1.The aspirational intent of the man upon the physical plane suddenly succeeds in enabling him to make a soul [page 714] contact. The moment that that takes place the
light in the headis momentarily intensified. (DINA1 676)
Stage IV. Chela on the Thread. Into the dark the life proceeds. A different voice seems to sound forth. "Enter the cave and find your own; walk in the dark and on your head carry a lighted lamp." The cave is dark andlonely;cold is it and a place of many sounds and voices. The voices of the many sonsof God, left playing on the playground of the Lord, make their appeal for light. The cave is long andnarrow. The air is full of fog. The sound of running water meets the rushing sound of wind, andfrequent roll of thunder.Far off, dim and most vaguely seen, appears an oval opening, its colour blue
. Stretched athwart this space of blue, a rosy cross is seen
, and at the centre of the cross, where four[page 676] arms meet,a rose. Upon the upper limb, a vibrant diamond shines,within a star five-pointed.The living soul drives forward towards the cross which bars his way to life, revealed and known. Not yet the cross is mounted and, therefore, left behind. But onward goes the living soul, eyes fixed upon the cross, ears open to the wailing cries of all his brother souls.
Stage V. One within the aura Out into radiant life and light! The cave is left behind; the cross is overturned; the way stands clear.The word sounds clear within the head and not within the heart. "Enter again the playground of theLord and this time lead the games." The way upon the second tier of stairs stands barred, this by thesoul's own act. No longer red desire governs all the life, but now the clear blue flame burns strong. Upon the bottom step of the barred way he turns back and passes down the stairs on to the playground, meeting dead shells built in an earlier stage, stepping upon forms discarded and destroyed, and holding forth the hands of helpfulness. Upon his shoulder sits the bird of peace; upon his feet the sandals of the messenger. Not yet the utter glory of the radiant life! Not yet the entering into everlasting peace! But still the work, and still the lifting of the little ones.(EOH 48) 1. The seed of mind was implanted in some of the aspiring animal-men by the Hierarchy,and these animal men became human beings, of a very low order to be sure, but still men. They were"sparked," if I might so express it, and a
point of light appeared where before there was none.Before there was only a diffused atomic light but no central point of light withinthe head, and no indication of the higher centres. These individuals, along with the more advanced humanity which came to the planet in Atlantean times (having individualised elsewhere), constitute the most advanced humanity of our present period. They represent culture and understanding, no matter where it is found, or in what class or race.(EOH 170) The Hierarchy and humanity are at last en rapport. This is the higher reflection or correspondence to what goes on within the consciousness of a human being who—having reached the stage of discipleship—is at the point of blending the light of the personality(as it is expressed through the ajna centre and its externalisation, the pituitary body) and the light of the soul(as it is, in its turn, expressed [Page 170] by the light in the head, or by the head centre and its externalisation, the pineal gland).(EOH 273) We come now to the second stanza, with its direct references to human attitudes and recognitions. For decades, I, as one of the spiritual teachers, along with many others, have sought to awaken all to the fact of Light—light in the world, light coming from the plane of desire (called the astral plane quite often), light illumining science and human knowledge, the light of the soul,producing in due time the light in the head. You have been carefully taught that the right use of the mind in meditation and reflection will lead to the correct relation of soul and personality, and that when this has taken place, the light of the soul.The reference in this second stanza ignites or fosters the light in the head and the man reaches the stage of illumination is to the more extended idea of the relation of humanity (the kingdom of men) to the spiritual Hierarchy (the kingdom of God). When these two are more closely aligned and related, light will break out among the sons of men as a whole, just as light breaks out in the individual aspirant.(ITI 160) In the physical body there are certain most interesting reactions. These fall into two main groups: First, a stimulation to an intense activity, which has a definite effect upon the nervous system,and secondly, there is frequently the
appearance of a light within the head, which canbe seen even when the eyes are closed, or in the dark.
(ITI 169) When we arrive at the physical level of consciousness and of the reaction to the illumination which is streaming down into the brain, we have two predominant effects, usually. There is a sense or an awareness of a light in the head
, and frequently also a stimulation to an activity which is abnormal…A second effect, as we have seen, is the recognition [Page 170] of the light in the head. This fact is so well substantiated that it needs little reinforcing. Dr. Jung refers to it in the following manner:"...the light-vision, is an experience common to many mystics, and one that is undoubtedly of the greatest significance, because in all times and places it appears as the unconditional thing, which unites in itself the greatest power and the profoundest meaning. Hildegarde von Bingen, a significant personality quite apart from her mysticism, expresses herself about her central vision in a quite similar way. 'Since my childhood,' she says,
'I always see a light in my soul, but not with the outer eyes,
nor through the thoughts of my heart; neither do the five outer senses take part in this vision....The light I perceive is not of a local kind, but is much brighter than the cloud which bears the sun. I cannot distinguish in it height, breadth, or length....What I see or learn in such a vision stays long in my memory. I see, hear, and know at the same time, and learn what I know in the samemoment....I cannot recognize any sort of form in this light, although I sometimes see in it another light that is known to me as the living light....While I am enjoying the spectacle of this light, all sadness and sorrow disappear from my memory....'…This light in the head takes various forms, and is often sequential in its development. A diffused light is first seen, sometimes outside the head and, later, within the brain
,when in deep thought or meditation; then it becomes more focussed and looks, as some express it, like a radiant and very brilliant sun. Later, at the centre of the radiance, a
point of vivid electric blue appears (perhaps the "living light"
referred to above) and from this a golden pathway of light leads out. This has sometimes been called "the Path," and there isa possibility that the prophet was not speaking merely symbolically when he said that "the path of the just is as a shining light that shineth more and more until the day be with us."In this light in the head, which seems a universal accompaniment of the illuminative state, we have[Page 172] probably also the origin of the halo depicted around the heads of the illuminati of the world.Much investigation remains to be done along this line, and much reticence and prejudice has to be overcome. But many are beginning to record their experiences and they are not the psychopathics of the race, but reputable and substantial workers in the varying fields of human endeavor. The time may shortly be with us when the fact of illumination may be recognized as a natural process, and the ligh tin the head be regarded as indicating a certain definite stage of co-ordination and of interplay between the soul, the spiritual man, and the man on the physical plane. When this is the case, we shall have brought our human evolution to such a point that instinct, intellect and intuition can be used at will by the trained and fully educated man, and the "light of the soul" can be turned upon any problem. Thus the omniscience of the soul will be manifested on earth.(ITI 215) Sixth: The high grade intellectual personality, with its focus of attention in the region of the pituitary body, begins to vibrate in unison with the higher centre in the region of the pineal gland.Then a magnetic field is set up between the positive soul aspect and the waiting personality which is rendered receptive by the process of focussed attention. Then the light, we are told, breaks forth, and we have the illumined man, and the appearance of the phenomenal [Page 215] light in the head. All this is the result of a disciplined life, and the focussing of the consciousness in the head. This is, in its turn, brought about through the attempt to be concentrated in the daily life, and also through definite concentration exercises. These are followed by the effort to meditate, and later — much later — the power to contemplate makes itself felt (ITI 251) The hands should be folded in the lap, and the feet crossed. If the western scientist is right when he tells us that the human body is really an electric battery, then perhaps his Oriental brother is also right when he says that in meditation there is a bringing together of negative and positive energy,and that by this means we produce the light in the head.Therefore, it is wise to close the circuit.(ITI 255) In mental types, or in the case of those who have already some facility in "centering the consciousness" in the head, it is the brain cells which become [Page 256] over-stimulated, leading to headaches, to sleeplessness, to a sense of fulness, or to a disturbing vibration between the eyes or at the very top of the head. Sometimes there is a sense of blinding light, like a sudden flash of lightning or of electricity, registered when the eyes are closed, and in the dark equally as in the light.
When this is the case, the meditation period should be reduced from fifteen minutes to five, or meditation should be practiced on alternate days, until such time as the brain cells have adjusted themselves to the new rhythm and the increased stimulation.(GAWP 3) Intuition is light itself, and when it is functioning, the world is seen as light and the light bodies of all forms become gradually apparent
. This brings with it the ability to contact the light centre in all forms, and thus again an essential relationship is established and the sense of superiority and separateness recedes into the background.Intuition, therefore, brings with its appearance three qualities:Illumination. By illumination I do not mean the light in the head. That is incident a land phenomenal, and many truly intuitive people are entirely unaware of this light. The light to whichI refer is that which irradiates the Way.
It is "the light of the intellect," which really means
that which illumines the mind and which can reflect itself in that mental apparatus which is held "steady in the light." This is the "Light of the World," a Reality which is eternally existent, but which can be discovered only when the individual interior light is recognised as such. This is the "Light of the Ages," which shineth ever more until the Day be with us. The intuition is therefore the recognition in [Page 4] oneself, not theoretically but as a fact in one's experience, of one's complete identification with the Universal Mind, of one's constituting a part of the great WorldLife, and of one's participation in the eternal persisting Existence.(LOS 180) 1. Enlightenment. The light in the head, which is at first but a spark, is fanned to a flame which illumines all things and is fed constantly from above. This is progressive (see previous sutra), and is dependent upon steadfast practise, meditation and earnest service.(LOS 180) Illumination The gradually increasing downpour of fiery energy increases steadily the "light in the head," or the effulgence found in the brain
in the neighborhood of the pineal gland. This is to the
little system of the threefold man in physical manifestation what the physical sun is to the solar system. This light become seventually a blaze of glory and the man becomes a "son of light" or a "sun of righteousness." Such were the Buddha, the Christ, and all the great Ones who have attained.(LOS 210) The secondary meaning has of course direct reference to the work of the kundalini or serpent fire at the base of the spine as it responds to the soul vibration (felt in the head, in the region of the pineal gland, and called "the light in the head
"). Mounting upward, it burns out allobstructions in the spinal etheric channel and vitalizes or electrifies the five centres up the spine and the two in the head. The vital airs within the ventricles of the head are also swept into activity and produce a cleansing, or rather eliminating effect therein.(LOS 228) 52. Through this, that which obscures the light is gradually removed.The first result is the gradual wearing away, or attenuation of the material forms which hide [Page228] the reality. This does not mean the wasting away of the forms but the steady refining and transmutation of the matter with which they are constructed so that they become so purified and clarified that the "Light of God" which they have hitherto hidden, can shine forth in all its beauty inthe three worlds. This can be demonstrated as literally true upon the physical plane, for through the work of purification and the control of the life currents the light in the head becomes soapparent that it can be seen by those who have supernatural vision, asradiations extending all around the head, thus forming the halo so well known in pictures of the saints. The halo is a fact in nature and not just a symbol. It is the result of the work of Raja Yoga and is the physical demonstration of the life and light of the spiritual man. Vivekan and a says, speaking technically (and it is good for Western occult students to master the technique and terminology of this science of the soul which the East has held in trust for so long):"The chitta has, by its own nature, all knowledge. It is made of sattva particles, but is covered by rajas and tamas particles, and by pranayama this covering is removed."(LOS 253) 5. As a result of sanyama comes the shining forth of the light.There are several terms used here by various commentators and translators and it might be of interest to consider some of them, for in the various interpretations will come a full understanding of the Sanskrit terms.Briefly, the idea involves the conception that the nature of the soul is light, and that light is the great revealer. The yogi, through steady practise in meditation, has reached the point where he can at will,turn the light which radiates from his very being, in any direction, and can illumine any subject. Nothing can therefore be hid from him and all knowledge is at his disposal. This power is therefore described as:[Page 253]1. Illumination of perception. The light of the soul pours forth and the man on the physical plane, in his brain consciousness, is thereby enabled to perceive that which before was dark and hidden from him. The process may technically be described in the following concise terms:a. Meditation, b. Polarization in the soul or egoic consciousness,c. Contemplation, or the turning of the soul-light upon that which is to be known or investigated,d. The subsequent pouring down of the knowledge ascertained, in a "stream of illumination" into the brain, via the sutratma, the thread-soul, silver cord, or magnetic link. This thread passes through the mind and illumines it. The thoughts engendered in the automatic response of the chitta (or mind stuff)to the knowledge conveyed, are then impressed upon the brain and the man, in his physical consciousness, becomes cognizant of what the soul knows. He becomes illumined.As this process becomes more frequent and steady, a change takes place in the physical man. He becomes more and more synchronized with the soul. The time element in transmission recedes into
the background and the illumination of the field of knowledge by the light of the soul and the illumining of the physical brain,
becomes an instantaneous happening.The
light in the head increases in a corresponding degree and the third eye develops and functions. On the astral and mental plane a corresponding [Page 254] "eye" develops,and thus the ego or soul can illumine all the three planes in the three worlds as well as the soul realm…(LOS 291) 3.Awakening the light in the head so that the aspirant can become a radiant centre of light and illumine all problems, and through its light see light everywhere.6. This effected, the fire at the base of the spine, dormant hitherto, will be aroused and can proceed upward with security,blending ultimately with the fire or light in the head, and so pass out, having "burned out all dross, and left all channels clear" for the use of the ego.(LOS 292)
This light is in the nature of an internal radiance, its position is in the head, in the neighborhood of the pineal gland, and it is produced by the activity of the soul.A good deal of discussion has been aroused, by the term"central organ" associated with this light. Some commentators refer this to the heart, others to the head. Technically neither of them are entirely right, for to the trained adept the "central organ" is the causal vehicle,the karana sarira, the body of the ego, the sheath of the soul. This is the middle of the "three periodical vehicles" which the divine Son of God discovers and utilizes in the course of his long pilgrimage.(LOS 293) In the science of yoga, which has to be wrought out and mastered in the physical body the term "central organ" is applied to the head or the heart, and the distinction is one of time primarily.The heart in the earlier stages of unfoldment upon the Path is the central organ;
later it is the organ in the head where the true light has its abiding place.(LOS 305) With these five, the aspirant is primarily concerned. The centre called the spleen was dominant [Page 305] in Lemurian days but is now relegated to the domain of the fully functioning and therefore automatic centres, and has sunk below the threshold of consciousness.The centre between the eyebrows is the
one through which the light in the head is cast upon things"subtle, obscure, hidden or remote"and is a result of the unfolding of the head and heart.(LOS 315) 2.Those who have attained self-mastery can be seen and contactedthrough focussing the light in the head.This power is developed in one-pointed meditation.This is a paraphrase of a very general nature, but gives the exact sense of the terms employed. In the twenty-fifth sutra we considered the nature of the light in the head. Here it might briefly bestated that when the
aspirant is aware of the light in the head, and can utilize it atwill, turning its radiance upon all that he seeks to know, the time comes when he can not only turn it outward on to the field of knowledge wherein he functions in the three worlds, but can turn it in wardand direct it upward into those realms wherein the saints of God, the great "Cloud of Witnesses" walk.He can, therefore, through its medium, become aware of the world of the Masters, Adepts and Initiates and thus contact them in full waking consciousness,registering those contacts with his physical brain apparatus.Hence the
necessity of becoming aware of one's own light, of trimming one'slamp and of using the light that is in one, to the full. By use and care, the power of the spiritual light grows and waxes and develops a dual function….here are two inferences here which have nothing to correspond to them in modern thought. One is,that there is a light in the head; and the other, that there are divine beings who maybe seen by those who thus concentrate upon the 'light in the head.' It is held that a certain nerve, or psychic current, called Brahmarandhra-nadi, passes out through the brain near the top of the head.In this there collects more of the luminous principle innature than elsewhere in the body and it is called jyotis—the light in the head.And, as every result is to be brought about by the use of appropriate means, the seeing of divine beings can be accomplished by concentration upon that part of the body more nearly connected with them.This point—the end of Brahmarandhra-nadi—is [Page 315] also the place where the connection is made between man and the solar forces."It is this light which causes the "face to shine" and is responsible for the halo depicted around the head of all saints and Masters and which is seen by those with clairvoyant vision around the head of all advanced aspirants and disciples .Dvivedi also gives the same teaching in the following words:"The light in the head is explained to be that
collective flow of the light of sattva which is seen at the Brahmarandhra which is variously supposed to be somewhere near the coronal artery, the pineal gland, or over the medulla oblongata. Just as the light of a lamp burning within the four wallsof a house presents a luminous appearance at the keyhole,so even does the light of sattvashow itself at the crown of the head.This light is very familiar to all acquainted evens lightly with Yoga practices and is seen even by concentration on the space between the eyebrows. By Samyama (meditation) on this light the class of beings called siddhas— popularly known in theosophic circles as Mahatmas or high adepts—able to walk through space unseen, are immediately brought to view, notwithstanding obstacles of space and time."33. All things can be known in the vivid light of the intuition.There are three aspects of knowledge associated with the light in the head.First, there is that knowledge which the ordinary [Page 316] man canpossess, which perhaps is best expressed in the word theoretical. It makes a man aware of certain hypotheses, possibilities and explanations. It gives to him an understanding of ways, means and methods, and enables him to take the first step towards correct ascertainment and achievement. This is true of that knowledge which Patanjali deals with. By acting upon this knowledge and by conforming to the requirements of the intended investigation or development, the aspirant becomes aware of the light in the head.
On the occasion of the 56th International Art Exhibition of la Biennale di Venezia, one of Venice’s most celebrated landmarks, the Basilica of San Giorgio Maggiore, will host Together, a major exhibition of new works by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa.
Plensa (Spain, b.1955) is one of the world’s foremost artists working in the public art space, with permanent works spanning the globe including the Crown Fountain (Chicago), Echo (Seattle), Breathing (London) and Roots (Tokyo). The exhibition is curated by Clare Lilley, Director of Programmes at Yorkshire Sculpture Park. The works in the exhibition all make their debut in San Giorgio and reflect the artist’s continued interest in a bodily relationship to space, scale, material and place.
For four hundred years the Basilica of San Giorgio Maggiore has been a place of worship, communication and meditation, where Palladio’s profound architecture creates a stilling and contemplative environment. Plensa’s response to this powerful space is Together; a conversation between two sculptures - hand, suspended beneath the cupola in the foreground of the altar, and head, sited in the nave. Placed on the dominant west-east axis of the building, the works set up a line of spiritual and intellectual discourse which evokes emotion and seeks to connect with his viewers on an intuitive level.
As a speaker of five languages alongside a nomadic life that takes him around the globe, Plensa’s work reflects a desire to break down barriers. Merging difference is a cornerstone of his work, and here it is further emphasized by the installation of meticulous drawings and a group of five alabaster portraits in the contiguous Officina dell’Arte Spirituale, located 300 meters from the entrance to the Basilica on the island’s northern edge. Plunged in darkness and lit to reveal their luminous opacity, the sculptures were carved using reformed scans of real girls; chosen because, like nomads, they have traveled, settled and traveled again. Chosen, too, because they are teenage girls on the cusp of leaving and arriving, whose potential – like that of all humanity – so deeply glows.
Plensa’s sculptures reference a Judeo-Christian tradition while connecting with a much longer human history, where the making of art has social purpose and which we see played out across histories and geographies – in heads from the Croatian Upper Paleolithic, carved some 26,000 years ago; in exquisite, elongated hands incised in stone from 1300 BCE Egypt. For these and other reasons, Plensa’s forms will connect people and welcome them into the Basilica. Made from stainless steel which distills and diffuses light, Plensa’s hand and head are at times transmutable hazes that pull and root the gaze. The opening, gestural hand formed from characters of eight languages, speaks of a coming together of peoples and traditions. Similarly, Nuria’s face speaks of diversity; indeed the subject is the daughter of a Chinese friend in Barcelona, who in her young life has already crossed many borders.
Clare Lilley, Curator, commented: “Plensa’s installations for the Isola di San Georgio Maggiore are testament to his acute understanding of space and scale. His sculptures do not impose themselves on these historic spaces; rather they capture and reflect the actual light and shadows within to communicate a metaphorical language. Both visually stunning and intimate, they draw our attention to a world where migration and difference challenge civilized behavior; in this place, which for centuries has welcomed world travelers, Plensa’s work will connect people of many faiths and of no faith.
In collaboration with the monks of the Abbazia di San Giorgio, as part of the cultural activities of the Benedicti Claustra Onlus, Together hopes to advance the Benedictine community’s efforts to develop a number of restoration projects of the monumental Palladian complex on San Giorgio Maggiore. Inspired by textual elements in the body of Plensa’s work, the project has contributed a significant donation to restore the Abbazia’s 15th and 16th Century illuminated manuscripts; prayer books previously too delicate for public view. (Press release)
Cnidocytes
Desiccation doesn't staunch it; the creature
can be dead, yet the blue sting lingers, primed
for inflicting pain. It's as though, by some
osmosis, those strings of cells had leached
the ocean's pigments, transmuted surf and sky
into poison: a perfect concentrate, pure as lapis.
Coelenterates have evolved, out of jelly,
an exquisite armoury against higher animals:
penetrant, glutinant, volvent, all deployed
blindly - touch-triggered murders, without
a trace of malice. They cooperate: buoyant
on pucker-sealed pneumatocysts, spine-primed
cnidocytes are eager to glut sucker-mouthed
gastrozooids with stunned and twitching flesh.
Poem by Giles Watson, 2013. The picture shows tentacles of a stranded specimen of Physalia utriculus, the Portugese Man o' War, colloquially known as the Bluebottle.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
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Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
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this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
Ezio Famà.
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questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
Ezio Famà.
The Wasp (Janet Van Dyne) is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee, Ernie Hart, and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Tales to Astonish #44 (June 1963).
Janet van Dyne is usually depicted as having the ability to shrink to a height of several centimeters, fly by means of insectoid wings, and fire bioelectric energy blasts. She is a founding member of the Avengers and the one who gave them their name as well as a longtime leader of the team. She is also the ex-wife of Hank Pym and the stepmother of Nadia van Dyne.
The Wasp has been described as one of Marvel's most notable and powerful female heroes.
"A hundred years from now, when we're all dead and buried, there will be only two things that we're remembered for... what we did. And what we looked like. Our uniforms are as much a part of our legacy as anything we'll ever do." — The Wasp
Janet Van Dyne is a fashion designer and socialite who acts as the winsome super-heroine known as the Wasp. In order to avenge the death of her father at the hands of an extradimensional creature, she was exposed to the size-altering Pym Particles and was biologically modified by Dr. Hank Pym, a.k.a. the tiny adventurer Ant-Man. As the Wasp, she became Pym's crime-fighting partner, having the ability to shrink in size, fly with synthetic wings and fire energy stings. Alongside Pym, she became a founding member of the Avengers, being responsible for suggesting the name of the group.
The Wasp eventually married Pym, but their relationship would turn out to be a tragic experience after she became a victim of domestic violence. Having weaponized the pain of her hurtful divorce, she has become one of the most prominent, efficient and empathetic Avengers' leaders. During the Skrull Invasion, the Wasp had her powers tampered with to serve as a final attack for the aliens in the form of a living bomb. Her apparent demise was followed by the end of the war. She was later found lost in the Microverse by the original Avengers and has resumed her superheroic career.
More recently, the Wasp has been part of multiple activities in the super-hero community. She was a member of the Unity Division, an initiative aimed to integrate mutant and human super-heroes, and became a secret Agent of Wakanda, working closely with the Avengers again. Additionally, since witnessing Pym's apprent death, she has acted as an inspiring and motherly mentor to her stepdaughter, the new Wasp.
History
The Winsome Wasp
Janet Van Dyne was born into a wealthy family. Her uncle was textile magnate Blaine Van Dyne, and his wife was talented fashion designer Amelia. Her father was world-renowned scientist Dr. Vernon Van Dyne, while her mother was a vibrant and creative woman who unfortunately sustained an incapacitating brain injury in a car accident when Janet was a child. Trapped in a vegetative state for years, Janet's mother sadly withered away and died.
As a young woman, Janet Van Dyne lived the life of an opulent socialite, having grown an interest in pursuing an education in fashion design. Usually accompanying her father in scientific meetings, she met Hank Pym, a young and unconventional scientist who experienced frustration by getting ridiculed for his uncanny shrinking formula. Interested in Pym, she invited him to dinner when they first met. He initially rejected her advances due to being focused on his research and on mourning his late wife, but eventually started to go to casual friendly dates with Van Dyne. Simultaneously, Pym secretly implemented his work on himself, acting as the tiny super hero Ant-Man.
When Dr. Van Dyne perfected a gamma-ray beam device to contact another dimension, he accidentally summoned the horrendous Creature from Kosmos. Killed by the monster's biologically-produced formic acid, his lifeless body was horribly discovered by his daughter, who called Pym for help. As Ant-Man, Pym investigated the murder and was astonished by Van Dyne's bravery in wishing to avenge her father. Pym could not help but compare Van Dyne with his strong-willed wife. Deciding to reveal his secret identity to Van Dyne, Ant-Man also shared his intentions of having a partner in his adventures. Grafting synthetic wings and antennae that would protrude from her shrunken-down body, Hank Pym transformed Janet Van Dyne into the wondrous Wasp. Together, Ant-Man and the Wasp eliminated the extradimensional alien, the first of many feats that their partnership would give them.
As a crime-fighting duo, Ant-Man and the Wasp fought many villains, including recurrent figures such as Egghead and the Porcupine. The Wasp, with her savvy and cheerful attitude, proved to be crucially beneficial to Ant-Man's career, as she exhibited masterful competence as a super-heroine. Additionally, in between their adventures, she constantly expressed her wishes of becoming romantically involved with Pym, but kept being rejected by the gloomy widower. With a rising reputation as a charismatic celebrity, the Wasp also frequently entertained fans, hospital patients and even Hank Pym by telling them diverse fantasy stories.
Avengers, Assemble!
On patrol duty, Ant-Man and the Wasp eventually received an intercepted transmission cast by the Teen Brigade about a conflict involving the monstrous Hulk and the God of Thunder Thor. The fight had been in fact orchestrated by Thor's trickster brother Loki. Teamed up with Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp clashed with the Hulk until Thor arrived with the defeated Loki, revealing the mischievous origin of the whole ordeal. With Loki defeated, the accidentally formed group of heroes unanimously agreed to found an official team. The Wasp came up with their colorful and dramatic name: the Avengers. As Avengers, Ant-Man and the Wasp were based at Avengers Mansion in New York City, but also maintained their activities as an independent duo, living at Pym Laboratories in New Jersey.
Deciding to augment his powers to be more useful to the Avengers, Pym designed a growth formula, revamping himself as Giant-Man. With his new abilities, Giant-Man went into action against the high-speed robber known as the Human Top. The Wasp assisted Pym with his training, which granted him success in capturing the Human Top. A vengeful Human Top grew jealous of the relationship between Giant-Man and the Wasp, gradually becoming obsessed with her gorgeous figure. Around this period, in order to improve the Wasp's performance in the field, Pym developed a "Wasp's sting" -- a compressed air wrist gun which fired long-range blasts.
Having adventures both on their own and as active Avengers, Giant-Man and the Wasp faced multiple adversities, clashing with enemies such as the Masters of Evil, Kang the Conqueror and Immortus the master of time. Emotionally, the two partners struggled to deal with their affection for each other. The opposite actions of an excessively playful Van Dyne and an emotionally closed Pym constantly ruined any chances of a calm relationship. In order to make Pym jealous, Van Dyne teased him about getting married to the social register Sterling Stuyvesant.
She regretted her actions after the duo combated the macabre Magician. Tensions escalated after Van Dyne felt rejected for accidentally damaging some equipment for one of Pym's projects. Deciding to leave Giant-Man, the Wasp abandoned their partnership. However, she was captured by the Atlantean barbarian Attuma. As Giant-Man came to her rescue, their combined size-changing abilities tricked Attuma into believing all surface dwellers had such powers, causing him to flee and rekindling their partnership.
Their relationship experienced another dramatic complication when the Avengers focused on the Maggia crime syndicate. Their secret leader Count Nefaria invited the Avengers to his castle under the auspices of a charity gala. With his true intentions revealed, the Wasp was critically wounded by a gunshot. Rushed to a nearby hospital with her lung punctured, Van Dyne's only hope lied in a Norwegian surgeon named Dr. Svenson. The Avengers were shocked to learn Svenson was actually a Kallusian alien hiding from their foes, the Yirbek, on Earth. Brought to America, Svenson performed the surgery on the Wasp, successfully saving her life.
Not long after, the Avengers defeated their archnemesis, the Masters of Evil and discussed the future of the group. The Wasp decided to take a leave of absence alongside Pym after her recent brush with death. Although they were not Avengers anymore, they maintained their partnership as a couple of independent vigilantes.
The Human Top's obsession with the Wasp escalated to the point that he kidnapped her in hopes of forcing her to fall in love with him. Tracking Van Dyne through her Wasp's cybernetic relays, Giant-Man reached the Human Top's hideout. Defeated by Giant-Man with the Wasp's help, the Human Top was handed over to the authorities. The stressful situation helped Pym to profess his love for Van Dyne, and they finally embarked on a romantic relationship. After this episode, they went into their first full retirement, got engaged to each other and dedicated their lives to scientific research.
Pym took on a job involving a deep-sea drilling operation to assess the origins of life on Earth, having Van Dyne as his assistant. Their operation caused earthquakes in Atlantis, drawing Namor the Sub-Mariner to attack their platform. Considering the savage Atlantean marching to New York City could be a threat, the Wasp decided to seek the Avengers out. En route, she was one more time captured by Attuma, who believed her to be a spy trying to stop his most recent plans to invade the surface world. The Wasp managed to break free and alert the Avengers, but in turn was restrained by the exotic Collector. The Avengers ultimately thwarted Attuma's plans for conquest.
With the Wasp missing, Pym contacted the Avengers for help and rejoined the group, rebranding himself as Goliath. Unexpectedly contacted by the Collector, the Avengers were challenged to come and get him at his secret hideout, where they battled through his various weapons as well as his minion, the Beetle. A defeated Collector teleported away with the Beetle.
The Wasp was freed, but Goliath found himself permanently trapped in his giant-sized form, a result of a long time with no practice with his powers. Deeply depressed, the freakishly gigantic Goliath pushed the Wasp away and even left the Avengers Mansion. However, when the team was captured by the Black Widow and her employees, the Swordsman and Power Man, the Wasp and Goliath fully returned to Avengers duty, easily trouncing their foes, who succeeded in escaping though.
Realizing that his old university professor Dr. Franz Anton could be a solution to his problem, Goliath secretly went to South America with hopes of a cure, where he found that Anton was a prisoner of the Keeper of the Flame. The Wasp and the Avengers tracked down Goliath and escaped with Dr. Anton. When Goliath finally asked Dr. Anton for aid, he told the hero that only one man could possibly help: Dr. Henry Pym. Pym slowly overcame his depression by getting used to his condition, much to Van Dyne's delight. However, their relationship experienced another minor turmoil after Pym decided to rudely dismiss her as his assistant, hiring biochemist Bill Foster to replace her.
As a public figure, due to her activities both as a socialite and as an Avenger, Van Dyne became the obsession of a new villain, her friend's ex-boyfriend Arthur Parks, the Living Laser. Seeking to win the Wasp's love, the Laser attacked Goliath at his lab, but the man-mountain easily defeated his foe, who then turned over to fellow Avengers Captain America and Hawkeye. The Living Laser broke free and made the Wasp and the Avengers his prisoners. Learning that the Avengers were in trouble, Goliath tracked the Laser down to his base. However, by the time he arrived the Living Laser had already absconded with the Wasp, trying to overthrow the nation of Costa Verde. The Avengers launched an attack against the Laser's forces. During the course of the battle, Goliath allowed himself to get captured. Previously regaining his shrinking powers with Foster's help, he was able to free himself and the Wasp. The Avengers then crushed the Living Laser's invasion.
When examining the robot Dragon Man as part of his initial studies on artificial intelligence, Pym was approached by Dragon Man's former controller, Diablo. Wishing to have the creature restored to life, Diablo took both Goliath and the Wasp prisoners. By threatening the Wasp's life, Diablo forced Goliath to build an army of Dragon Men in a plot to take over the world. The Avengers came to help, but Goliath was forced to fight his comrades as he did not wish the Wasp to get hurt. However, the Avengers' newest ally Hercules defeated Dragon Man and saved the Wasp, taking Diablo prisoner and destroying his castle. During this crisis, Van Dyne turned 23 and, as a consequence, fully inherited her family fortune, effectively becoming a millionaire.
Reinventing himself as Whirlwind, the Wasp's stalker previously known as the Human Top decided to get revenge against his old enemies. Taking on the false identity of "Charles Matthews", Whirlwind worked for the now millionaire Van Dyne as her chauffeur. This allowed him to know in detail when to strike the Avengers Mansion. Whirlwind made his move by using a shrinking ray to reduce the Wasp and Goliath down to ant-size and toss them into Pym's ants' habitat. Without any control devices and having their size-changing powers negated, the couple was forced to fend for themselves against the insects.
Eventually, Pym got to a miniaturized cybernetic control center and created an ant-controlling headpiece which allowed them to escape their death trap. Whirlwind was forced to flee when confronted by the other Avengers, but managed to keep his secret alter ego unrevealed. In order to get their minds off of this recent drama, the couple decided to take a short vacation trip to Las Vegas.
After many enemies, the Wasp and the Avengers met their most formidable foe in the form of Ultron, the living automaton. Masquerading as the macabre Crimson Cowl and manipulating the Avengers' butler, Edwin Jarvis, Ultron attacked the Avengers alongside a new group of Masters of Evil, which included Whirlwind. Helped by the Black Knight, the Wasp and the Avengers were victorious against the Masters. Ultron, however, managed to escape after revealing his true identity.
The humanoid machine continued to plot against the Avengers by sending a creation of his own to infiltrate Avengers Mansion: a synthetic man with ethereal abilities. Shocked by the lifeless and unearthly apparition inside her quarters, the Wasp verbally expressed the terror caused by such an inhuman "vision". As the other Avengers came to her rescue, the android was incapacitated and then analyzed. Adopting the name the Vision after the Wasp's reaction, the artificial man overcame Ultron's programming and led the Avengers to his former master's hideout. Ultron was apparently destroyed, but the mystery behind his hate against the Avengers remained.
During their investigation, the Avengers came upon the ruins of one of Pym's former laboratories, where Pym had access to records of himself creating Ultron, a consequence of his interest in artificial intelligence for studying Dragon Man. Ultron, having a fast-evolving intelligence, rebelled against his "father". As a final act during their fight, Ultron erased Pym's memory about his existence and left the devastated site. Later, Van Dyne found her debilitated partner, but only after all traces of Ultron had vanished.
Ultron's attack proved to have a deep impact on Pym's psyche. This was aggravated by a combination of his emotional repression and the chemicals he had inadvertently been exposing himself to, which triggered a schizophrenic episode. His memories of Hank Pym were submerged and his inhibitions were pushed to the fore. Developing a new identity as the chauvinistic Yellowjacket in order to antagonize Goliath's insecure attitude, Pym forged himself into an assertive lover to the Wasp.
Using his villainous new alias, he fabricated a story in which he believed he had defeated Goliath in battle, shrinking him down to size and leaving him to die at the hands of a spider. The grieving Avengers clashed with their teammate's "murderer", which ended with the heroes defeated and Janet Van Dyne as Yellowjacket's prisoner. When the Avengers came to the Wasp's rescue, much to their shock and surprise, she informed them that she intended to marry her obnoxious captor.
A bizarre wedding ceremony went through, and the catering staff had been unknowingly replaced by the Ringmaster and his Circus of Crime. Seeing Van Dyne in peril at the hands of the villains, Yellowjacket at first cracked under the pressure but then used Goliath's growing powers, revealing to his teammates that he was Hank Pym all along. The Circus of Crime was easily defeated by Avengers easily turned over to the authorities. With Pym's mind seemingly restored, the just-married couple was able to enjoy some happiness.
During their honeymoon, Pym deduced that his growing powers were partially responsible for his schizophrenic episode and decided to retire as Goliath in favor of maintaining his Yellowjacket identity, using his shrinking powers once again. With the end of their honeymoon, the Wasp and her husband accompanied the Avengers on a mission to rescue the Black Widow in the Caribbean, which turned out to be a trap set by Egghead, who continuously targeted the Avengers, seeking revenge against his old foes Hank Pym and the Wasp with no success.
Another ghost of the Pyms' past manifested in the form of a failed attack executed by a recovered Ultron. Following some other missions alongside his wife and the Avengers, Pym was eventually offered an assignment by the government to study in Alaska. Since he accepted the proposal, Yellowjacket and the Wasp permanently left the Avengers and resumed their activities as researchers.
While visiting the Avengers Mansion, the Wasp was shocked to find it occupied by the Liberators, an all-female group commanded by the warrior woman named the Valkyrie, who had managed to convince her associates to turn against their male teammates. The Wasp assisted the Liberators in interrupting a conflict between the Avengers and the Masters of Evil. With the Avengers overpowered, the Valkyrie was revealed to be the villain Amora the Enchantress and was fended off by the Liberators.
Later on, during one of their investigations, the Pyms lost contact with their research colleagues, being forced to become Yellowjacket and the Wasp to search for them. In the frigid Arctic, they found an atypically tropical environment. Unexplainably, Yellowjacket knocked the Wasp out and sent her back to safety. She contacted the Avengers to go to her missing husband's rescue.
Inside the dense jungle, the Avengers were attacked by the Kree Accuser Ronan, who had captured and devolved Pym and the other scientists into primitive beings, an experiment to facilitate his intentions of dominating Earth. Pym's affection for the Wasp prevented him from causing her any harm in his devolved state. Although Ronan would probably come out victorious by subduing all the Avengers, he was forced to abandon his plans upon learning the Kree Empire was under attack by Skrulls. With his base destroyed, Pym was restored to his former self and, alongside the Wasp, once again uttered his intentions of permanently retiring from his super-hero activities.
The Pyms eventually returned to New Jersey, where Hank kept on performing his studies as a chemist. Unfortunately, his experiments caused him to become permanently trapped in his ant-size form. After an arduous journey back home as the tiny Ant-Man, he learned that, in the days he was missing, Charles Matthews had taken advantage to get closer to Janet.
As she rejected Matthews, Pym managed to get her attention and reveal his recent and unfortunate condition. As Pym's lab assistant once again, Janet helped him to develop a cure. However, the pair was attacked by Matthews in his secret Whirlwind identity. Escaping Whirlwind, the Wasp also found herself trapped in her shrunken form from testing an antidote for her husband. The villain returned to the Pyms' house and the tiny couple had no choice but to abandon their home. With the building burned to the ground, the press assumed that the Pyms were killed in the fire.
Shrunken down as insects, the Pyms struggled to survive, being captured by a mad scientist called Boswell, who was a servant of his own mechanoid creation, the Para-Man. Ant-Man and the Wasp escaped, destroying Boswell's laboratory. However, in the process, Janet was mutated into a monstrous wasp-like creature as a side effect of the ineffective antidote. Behaving as a killer wasp, she attempted to murder her own husband. In order to defend himself, Ant-Man used his helmet to connect with her biology, reversing the transformation.
In their quest for help, the Pyms were then met by the nefarious Doctor Nemesis, who cured them only to blackmail Ant-Man into stealing technology from Avengers Mansion by holding the Wasp hostage. As Ant-Man rebelled, Nemesis was defeated, and the Pyms returned to their normal size and to their calm lives as researchers. Although retired, the couple of adventurers found themselves back in occasional super-hero activities, such as when protecting their ally Rick Jones from the Living Laser and the Lunatic Legion.
Pym's constant frustration as a failed scientist led to an erratic behavior that worried the Wasp, who in turn consulted a psychiatrist for help. Willing to revive their happier times, she decided to restore their super-hero careers. Claiming to have grown bored of her leave of absence, the winsome Wasp contacted the Avengers and asked to go back to active duty. Although Pym preferred to stay a mere scientist, he initially agreed to accompany his wife in the Avengers as Yellowjacket.
Almost immediately after their return, the Wasp was gravely wounded in an attack orchestrated by the Toad. At the hospital, she became an easy target for Whirlwind, who once again obsessively attempted to kidnap her. Failing after being met by the Avengers, Whirlwind tried to approach his victim as Charles Matthews. Finally, after years of deceit, Charles Matthews was outed as Whirlwind by Yellowjacket. With Beast's help, Whirlwind was defeated, which was followed by the Wasp's recovery.
The Wasp's excitement to resume her activities as an Avenger sporadically conflicted with Yellowjacket's apprehension and instability as a super-hero, although he remained with the team and the duo faced many dangers together. This led Yellowjacket to become interested in improving their super-abilities. However, before he could achieve his intentions, his instability escalated to the point that the Wasp found his laboratory in their home in Cresskill completely destroyed, with him nowhere to be found.
An amnesiac Hank Pym, in his Ant-Man persona, infiltrated Avengers Mansion and attacked his own teammates, being unable to recognize the newest Avengers due to his delusions. As the Wasp intervened, he was restrained and his recent mental issues exposed to the other Avengers. Returning home with the Beast, the Wasp was attacked and captured by Ultron, who in sequence apprehended Pym as well. In a Stark International's facility, Ultron set his macabre plan in motion by convincing a paranoid Pym to transfer the Wasp's consciousness into a metallic android body. Falsely alleging that the Wasp's life was at peril, Ultron in fact wished to activate a robotic bride for himself using Janet's brain patterns. The Avengers interrupted the process before its completion, but Ultron managed to flee, leaving Pym behind and completely insane.
Nevertheless, the Avengers succeeded in restoring Pym's psyche, and the couple took residence in a penthouse in Manhattan, where they came upon an injured Spider-Man and were subsequently attacked by the thermodynamic Equinox. During the ensuing battle, Yellowjacket was apparently slain, much to the Wasp's despair.
The grieving Wasp and Spider-Man were then met by Dr. Sorenson, Equinox's mother, who wished to activate a device to stop her son's rampage. In the Baxter Building, the trio was attacked both by Equinox and the malfunctioning building's defenses. Assisted by a pretty much alive Yellowjacket, the Wasp surprisingly knocked Equinox out with an upgraded version of her wrist sting. Yellowjacket revealed that he had engineered an improved Wasp serum that allowed her to convert the energy liberated during her shrinking into a powerful bio-electric blast. The process had been fully triggered by the stress of Janet witnessing her husband's apparent death.
Investing in her career as a fashion designer, Janet established links with New York City's posh high society. In her first exhibition, in Park Avenue, the criminal Porcupine and his lackeys attempted a robbery. Assisted by Nighthawk, the Wasp and Yellowjacket defeated the assailants. During the attack, one of the models wearing Janet's outfits, Carina Walters, simply vanished, sparking the heroes' curiosity.
The fate of Carina Walters was revealed only when the Avengers and their allies, the Guardians of the Galaxy, found her as a partner to the Guardians' enemy, Korvac. In between these events, the Wasp decided to move the female android created by Ultron to the Avengers Mansion as to keep it away from her house. There, the robot was activated. The Wasp and the other Avengers followed the artificial woman in an attempt to locate Ultron. Receiving the name Jocasta, Janet's robotic duplicate was influenced by her template's morality and turned against her creator, ultimately assisting the Avengers in destroying him.
Wishing to impress the Wasp with a birthday gift, Yellowjacket started to recraft Doctor Spectrum's Power Prism as a piece of jewelry. Before he could neutralize the artifact's dreadful properties, a curious Wasp tampered with the gem, being possessed and becoming the new Doctor Spectrum. Defeating some of the Avengers by deceiving them with the Wasp's form, Doctor Spectrum was incapacitated by the Vision. The Avengers then focused on how to separate the Power Prism from Janet Pym's body without injuring her. Their mission led to a battle against the Squadron Sinister and the former Doctor Spectrum. With the Avengers victorious, the Wasp was safe to celebrate her birthday party.
The Trial of Yellowjacket
Following Korvac's execution at the hands of the Avengers, Henry Gyrich reduced the Avengers' active roster under the National Security Council's orders. The Wasp was selected to compose the new formation, but Yellowjacket was not. For the first time in her career, the Wasp would act without Pym. Regardless, the couple dealt with the separation easily, as Yellowjacket was interested in focusing on his research. The Wasp's tenure with the Avengers was relatively tranquil for her, although she gradually grew distant from her husband. She also served with the Defenders under the Hellcat's request, a period when she was reunited with Yellowjacket in super-hero adventures.
When Avengers Mansion was invaded by a runaway inmate from the Solomon Institute for the Criminally Insane named Selbe, the Wasp was the one who stumbled upon him. Contrary to the other Avengers' opinions, she believed that there was something oddly unusual about the institute. With the disturbed Selbe hospitalized again, she secretly went to investigate the situation by herself.
Realizing the Wasp's intentions, the Avengers contacted Yellowjacket for help. In turn, Yellowjacket recruited the new Ant-Man to assist in the mission. The Wasp, trying to help Selbe escape, was captured by the institute's owner, Dr. Solomon. Yellowjacket and Ant-Man rescued the Wasp, learning the mental institution was actually a criminal academy run by the peculiar Taskmaster. The villain was defeated with the other Avengers' intervention, and the insect-themed trio was freed. As a consequence, Yellowjacket found himself closer to the Avengers again.
With Pym away when attending an electronics symposium in Tokyo, the Wasp was attacked at their home by one of Ultron's mechanical creations. Fleeing to Avengers Mansion, the Wasp had the Avengers' help in saving a captured Scarlet Witch and a mind-controlled Iron Man from Ultron, who was destroyed one more time. Soon after, under Captain America's decision to limit the number of active Avengers again, the team suffered with the resignation of several members. To keep the team functional, Hank Pym rejoined as Yellowjacket, once again working alongside his wife.
His comeback as an Avenger nurtured his wishes of thriving as a super-hero. As a nefarious consequence, he aggressively mistreated the Wasp, jealously believing himself to be diminished by her more successful career. At the same time, when the Avengers battled the Elfqueen, Yellowjacket blasted the opponent in the back during a lull in the fighting while Captain America wished to talk her down. The combat was ultimately solved by the Wasp's efficient actions. Charged by the Avengers for reckless behavior and having his credentials temporarily suspended until facing a formal court-martial, Yellowjacket experienced increased frustration, which triggered another nervous breakdown.
In order to prove his worth before his court-martial, Yellowjacket secretly designed a robot to attack the Avengers Mansion. His creation could only be defeated by him, and he expected to be seen as a hero in the eyes of his teammates. A few days later, the Wasp infiltrated his laboratory, feeling worried about his activities, and protested upon learning of his plan. Pym lashed out, brutally striking his own wife.
During his court-martial meeting, his plan went awry, since it was the Wasp who disabled the robot after Yellowjacket was overpowered by his own creation. Moreover, as the Avengers learned about his humiliating attack against the Wasp, Yellowjacket was expelled from the Avengers, leaving their headquarters in shame. Renouncing his name, Janet Van Dyne focused on her work as a fashion designer while arranging for a divorce. Pym soon approached her in their former house in Cresskill with absolutely no success in restoring their marriage.
After a short period of vacations in the Dominican Republic, the Wasp fully returned to the Avengers, proposing herself as the team's new chairwoman. In her first mission as the leader of the Avengers, she painfully had to confront Yellowjacket, who had been blackmailed by his nemesis Egghead into invading a Strategic Air Command base. Knocked out by the Wasp, Yellowjacket was arrested and sent to jail, being unable to link the attack to Egghead and prove his innocence.
Next, the Avengers were summoned to the planet Ba-Bani on Moondragon's request. As a peacemaker in Ba-Bani, Moondragon demanded their help to stop a rebellion. Soon, the Avengers learned about her elaborate deception to trick them, as the behavior in Ba-Bani had been telepathically staged by Moondragon, who in turn forced Thor to attack the Avengers. Joined by Drax the Destroyer, the Wasp effectively led the Avengers to put an end to Moondragon's irresponsible mind-controlling rule.
Considering the inclusion of new Avengers after the crisis with Moondragon, the Wasp invited several super-heroines to her home to discuss possible memberships, as she was interested in having more female teammates. The meeting was interrupted by Fabian Stankowicz a.k.a. the Mechano-Marauder, who was easily defeated by the Wasp and her friends. As a result, the sensational She-Hulk accepted the Wasp's offer to become an Avenger, and the two became good friends.
Another offer was made to the new Captain Marvel, who became an Avenger-in-training on the Wasp's recommendation. As for her personal life, Janet Van Dyne caught the interest of her teammate, Iron Man, who saw in her many similarities to his lifestyle. In his Tony Stark playboy identity, Stark easily approached her, since they frequented the same upmarket spaces. Within weeks, they embarked on a vibrant relationship, without the Wasp knowing Stark was actually her long-time ally Iron Man though. Stark's scheme led Captain America and Thor to call him out. Upon learning the truth, Van Dyne disappointedly decided to interrupt their up-and-coming love story.
Around this period, after escaping prison, Whirlwind replaced the Wasp's chauffeur in order to get closer to her again. His failed plan attracted the attention of the Avengers not only to himself but also to the new Masters of Evil, who had been reformed by Egghead. Days later, as Pym faced his trial for treason, Egghead sent his Masters of Evil to break into the courthouse and stage a situation in which Pym would be seen as a villain.
The Avengers failed to prevent Pym's abduction, and a horrified Wasp witnessed her ex-husband leave with their enemies. However, the Shocker, one of the Masters, was captured by the Avengers and revealed Egghead's involvement. Pym's reputation was partially cleared, and the Wasp led the Avengers to save him from the Masters of Evil. With Egghead killed in action and the Masters of Evil apprehended, Pym was proven innocent of being a traitor. At Avengers Mansion, Van Dyne and the Avengers decided to probe into Pym's psyche with his consent in order to look for any potential mind control, but found none.
Finally taking responsibility for his past mistakes, Pym rejected the Yellowjacket equipment for good. Before he permanently left Avengers Mansion, Van Dyne came to terms with her ex-husband, finally completing her grieving process and being able to hope for future joy. In time, Van Dyne and Pym were able to form a friendship.
Following Pym's departure, the Wasp had to cope with the death of Jocasta and the resignation of Iron Man, who had succumbed to alcoholism. Fortunately, the challenge of being the Avengers' chairwoman helped her feel alive. Her competence and cheerful attitude as an empathetic and savvy leader to the Avengers made her a publicly beloved heroine and an influential figure. In addition to many successful missions, her keen social skills also proved to be highly beneficial to the Avengers, as she tactfully managed to reduce government bureaucracy by being in direct contact with the White House.
Comprising the group of super-humans summoned to Battleworld by the Beyonder, the Wasp and some other Avengers took part in his Secret Wars experiment. Upon arrival, the Wasp was cautious about Magneto, who was also among the abducted heroes. As the Avengers clashed with him, she was captured. Apparently seduced by Magneto, Van Dyne revealed she had played along to find out his plans. Evading Magneto and his new allies, the X-Men, she escaped in an alien aircraft and took refuge with the outcast Lizard.
Unfortunately, the Wasp was mortally wounded by the Wrecker when the Wrecking Crew was dispatched by Doctor Doom to retrieve the Lizard. Left in a death-like state, she was ultimately revived by the alien healer Zsaji, being then transported to Earth as the war ended with Doctor Doom's defeat.
On Earth, while the Wasp was part of the Beyonder's experiment, the Vision, who had been recently repaired by the Titanian intelligence I.S.A.A.C., suspiciously took control of the Avengers. Upon her return, the Wasp decided to step down as chairwoman in favor of the Vision's leadership.
Bored with a sudden lack of responsibilities, Van Dyne momentarily found in her teammate Starfox a good partner to enjoy frivolous parties in their free time. During one of their escapades, they found themselves in the Eternal city of Olympia by following their kidnapped party hostess, Sersi. The other Avengers tracked them down and went to their aid as the Eternals were attacked by Maelstrom.
Enjoying her life to the fullest, Van Dyne took another vacation period in the Caribbean, where she met her old friend Tinky Weissman and the charming Paul Denning, the latter secretly being the hitman known as Paladin. As the Wasp, she learned the identity of Paladin's target in the Caribbean: Weissman's partner, the nefarious Baron Brimstone. Although initially believing the Baron to be a victim, the Wasp realized his vile and criminal intentions and teamed up with Paladin to stop him. During the fight, Paladin revealed his true identity and occupation to the Wasp, and she decided to maintain their romance regardless.
Around this period, Van Dyne became a shareholder of NEVELL Industries. When a trade union leader who was against NEVELL was murdered, Joe Robertson, the editor of the Daily Bugle, sent Peter Parker to cover the story. As Spider-Man, Parker reached Van Dyne to help him investigate the case. They came to the conclusion that drug-lord Vince Granetti might be responsible for the killing. While Van Dyne bureaucratically dealt with the situation, Spider-Man came for Granetti, being attacked by his employee, Paladin. Paladin left Spider-Man under Granetti's orders to convince Van Dyne to sell her stocks. As they met, he asked her to stage a fight to protect his reputation, and she flirtatiously played along. Then, the Wasp, Paladin and Spider-Man teamed up to put an end to Granetti's criminal activities and blackmailing.
The Vision's tenure as the Avengers' chairman turned out to be a failure, since I.S.A.A.C.'s influence caused him to seize control of the entire world's computer systems, leading the National Security Council to revoke their security clearance.
After the Wasp returned from her vacation, the Avengers asked her to return to her position as chairwoman, which she gladly accepted taking into account the Vision's previous machinations to make her renounce. New teammates were now placed under her supervision, such as the Black Knight, who would develop an unrequited crush on her, and Hercules, who would chafe at being given orders by a woman.
After many missions with the Avengers, the Wasp tried the possibility of keeping her flight powers at almost full human size with the Black Knight's assistance. This came in handy when she found a prowler inside her house in Cresskill. The robber acquired Pym's gear, becoming the new Yellowjacket. The Wasp knocked the villain out and got her arrested. Meanwhile, Hercules gradually increased his hostile feelings against the Wasp, as a result of her commands for him during battles.
The most serious test to the Wasp's leadership ability came when the Masters of Evil, now under Baron Helmut Zemo's leadership, struck against the Avengers by gradually undermining their operations. As part of their plan, the Wasp was put in direct combat against Moonstone, followed by a fight against Yellowjacket, the Screaming Mimi, and the Grey Gargoyle during a prison break attempt when she was aided by her lover, Paladin.
The culmination of the Masters of Evil's act was Avengers Mansion being conquered. The Wasp and Captain America attempted to furtively infiltrate the under-siege mansion, but their plan was foiled by the undisciplined and disrespectful Hercules, who got beaten into a coma by the Masters after going into open conflict with them. Being the only free Avenger, the Wasp found herself hopeless. She was then contacted by Ant-Man, who learned about the crisis.
At the hospital where Hercules was admitted to, Ant-Man and the Wasp were unsuccessfully attacked by the powerful Masters Titania and the Absorbing Man, who had been sent to finish Hercules off. Next, it was up to the Wasp to assemble the Avengers again and mount an assault to retake the mansion. Joined by Captain Marvel and Thor, the Wasp stroke back, rescuing the trapped Avengers, who in turn put an end to Zemo and his Masters of Evil.
Overtaken by the pressure of the siege to the Avengers Mansion, Janet announced her resignation as the Avengers' chairwoman, going to reserve status. Her need of having time for herself was not fulfilled, though, as she was abducted by the goddess Artemis under the orders of Hercules' father Zeus, who blamed the Wasp for his son's condition. The Wasp and the rest of the Avengers stood against Zeus on Olympus until the gods saw sense and ended the hostilities. After making amends with Hercules, the Wasp returned home safe and sound and said a final goodbye to her old teammates.
West Coast Avengers
With Iron Man leaving the Avengers' West Coast branch as a result of having his technology usurped and acting erratically, the wondrous Wasp offered her support to the team. This meant to be working alongside Pym again, who had become associated with the group. Although their leader Hawkeye was initially distrustful of Janet's intentions, she was welcomed to the group after a trip to the Grand Canyon.
The drama of rejoining her ex-husband escalated when he was targeted by a legion of his very first enemies in Central Europe. The initial attack comprised Pym getting access to intel that his late wife was alive. During the fights, Janet closely assisted Pym, who in turn managed to restore her prosthetic antennae, allowing her to control insects.
As one of the masterminds behind the operation was revealed to be the traitorous Quicksilver, the Avengers were briefly captured by the new Doctor Doom in Latveria. When captive, Pym and Janet grew closer, although she was explicitly adamant about sustaining their divorce.[148] With Quicksilver and the villains defeated, Pym decided to dedicate his energy to saving his debilitated ex-wife, earning the Wasp's support and admiration for that.
Less involved with the Avengers compared to the past, Janet focused on being a businesswoman for Van Dyne Industries, although she would still experience astonishing adventures, such as when she recognized and disabled the Red Ronin robot in a Stane International hardware exposition.
In the West Coast Avengers missions, the Wasp proved, as usual, to be an efficient and reliable player, frequently being a voice of reason in the team, even advising her teammates on personal matters. Although she did well, the same could not be said about her teammates, especially the Vision and the Scarlet Witch, who had their lives ruined by the successful machinations of Immortus, costing them the lives of their twin children, a tragic event that the Avengers could not prevent.
The Scarlet Witch's vulnerability made her an easy prey to Immortus, as she eventually succumbed to villainy and associated herself with Magneto and Quicksilver. The Wasp was momentarily captured by Magneto, but saved by the other Avengers, who then managed to fend Magneto off. Next, the Avengers went to war against Immortus, who was defeated after the Scarlet Witch broke free from his influence. Although the Avengers returned home alive, they were forever scarred by the tragedy.
By chance, when dealing with a flat tire, Janet and Pym came upon a wheat farm secretly run by Ultron and found some of his robotic creations. Some of the Avengers tracked Ultron down, but were kidnapped and technologically forced by Ultron to attack their own teammates. Freed by the Scarlet Witch, the Avengers prevented Ultron from causing a massacre in the Rose's parade. Immediately after this incident, as the West Coast Avengers had their roster reformed; both Pym and Janet decided to resign from active status, each one going their separate ways.
In Hollywood, Janet contemplated working as a screenwriter, but it did not work out as expected. As the Wasp, she returned to the East Coast as a reserve Avenger, and, in times of need, reassembled with her former friends to combat evil. She even teamed up with Pym and the Hulk to overcome one of Loki's pawns, the mad Knut Caine.
Monster Wasp
Out of the Avengers, Janet was slightly afflicted by tormenting thoughts about Pym and their troublesome relationship. To remedy her frustration, she went into a high-society life, ostentatiously enjoying her fortune. However, no ordinary life could match her previous experiences as an Avenger. Instead, she decided to reactivate her fashion career; her comeback was celebrated with a first-class ball, which was party-crashed by a gigantic Pym.
Janet was subsequently introduced by Pym and Bill Foster to Project B.I.G., an orchard engineered to produce super-sized crops, which also counted with enormous insects. Sometime later, the immense bugs went berserk and attracted the attention of the military. Defeated and apprehended, Pym was sent to a mental institution run by the government, while Foster and Ant-Man worked on a solution for the mutations afflicting Pym Particle subjects. Janet herself experienced an exponential size growth and a mental breakdown during a therapy session with Dr. Rossin.
Pym was set free with Captain America's intervention, and the Avengers attempted to restrain the rampaging giant-sized Wasp. As Pym learned who the authors of the recent incidents were, namely creatures from Kosmos and Erik Josten, the villains were defeated. Janet recovered, rekindling her ties to Pym and the Avengers.
Added to her difficulties with Pym, Janet unexpectedly went bankrupt, learning days later through her lawyer that Tony Stark was responsible for sabotaging her finances. Janet openly confronted Stark for cleaning her out, and the Avengers realized, considering other incidents as well, that Stark might be an enemy.
This was confirmed when he attacked the team as Iron Man. In order to protect Hercules, Janet took a repulsor beam fired by Stark and was mortally wounded. Attempting to heal her injuries, Pym redundantly exposed Janet to the procedure that originally gave her super-powers. The process triggered a profound transformation, with Janet being morphed into an almost completely wasp-like form. In perfect health, the monstrous Wasp joined the Avengers in their war against Stark. Corrupted by Kang the Conqueror, Stark was replaced by a teenage version of himself from an alternate past before perishing in battle. Following this fundamental crisis, the Wasp rejoined the Avengers full-time.
Coping relatively well with her new form, the Wasp exhibited an outstanding performance in missions for the Avengers. However, despite her apparent comfort, Pym was worried about her condition and inadvertently tagged the Wasp with a transceiver in order to monitor her. Having learned about his intervention, an enraged Wasp called him out and expressed her desire to be the only person in her life to take care of herself. Soon after, the Avengers were contacted by Nate Grey, who alerted them about Professor X's insane transformation into Onslaught. The Wasp was among the Avengers who sacrificed themselves to absorb the energy of Onslaught, but not before making amends with Pym.
Heroine Reborn
In reality, the heroes were shunted to an alternate dimension created by the unconscious actions of Franklin Richards. In this pocket reality, the Wasp worked closely with the Avengers. Although the Avengers had not fallen in the battle, the world mourned their apparent death for months. Upon the eventual return of the heroes to their home reality, the Wasp maintained her human appearance and rekindled her romantic relationship with Pym.
The founding members of the Avengers soon reassembled in the Avengers Mansion to reform the team in face of bizarre mystic crises all over the globe. Their adversary was revealed to be Morgan le Fay, who cast a reality altering spell, reshaping the whole world into a medieval setting and transforming the Avengers into her personal guard, the Queen's Vengeance. In this brand old world, the Wasp was "Pixie", but was able to see through Morgan's illusion alongside a few other Avengers.
Forced to fight their brainwashed allies, the Avengers were successful in defeating le Fay and restoring reality back to normal. Back to the mansion, the Wasp announced her leave of absence with Pym, as she wished to rebuild her investments.
When the Destiny Force within Rick Jones was triggered again, Immortus schemed for his destruction. Using his abilities, Jones brought forth champions to protect him. The Wasp and Pym, who had gone back to his Goliath identity, found themselves part of a diverse team composed of Avengers from various moments in time. Annoyingly, one of their teammates was Pym himself, removed from his Yellowjacket era. The Wasp took leadership of the time-displaced Avengers, who were unusually assisted by Kang in defending Jones.
Travelling through the timestream, the group met different moments and possibilities of their history while counter-attacking Immortus and trying to prevent the Time-Keepers from wiping out different timelines to incapacitate the Destiny Force. In the end, by assembling dozens of Avengers, Jones ended the threat of the Time-Keepers and the heroes returned to their proper time.
The Wasp soon returned to full active duty as an Avenger after Pym was attacked by Ultron in his laboratory at Nugent Technologies. Coming to the Avengers in person since her communicard had been damaged, she was led to a Wakandan adamantium plant, where the Avengers fought Alkhema and learned Ultron had made a move to raze the nation of Slorenia. When searching for Pym, the Avengers were attacked by an army of Ultron replicas, who abducted those considered to be his family, including his "mother", the Wasp.
Ultron's scheme to create an artificial society was shattered by the Avengers as he was destroyed by Pym himself. The Wasp and Goliath stayed with the Avengers after their last conflict with Ultron. Stepping up to active status again, the Wasp was further appointed as chairwoman when a new roster of Avengers was formed, personally inviting her friend the She-Hulk to the team once more.
Working as a super-hero with the Avengers again, Janet soon realized the fragility of Pym's mental health since, in one of their first missions, traces of his Yellowjacket personality emerged. Unbeknownst to the Avengers, the Pym Particles in Goliath's body spawned a replica of his body, which was manifested as Yellowjacket.
Expanding the Avengers' operations, the Wasp led the Avengers in many different battles facing diverse threats, but none compared to a world-level invasion staged by Kang the Conqueror. As part of his first and very serious strike, the Wasp witnessed Kang destroy United Nations Headquarters.
Dealing with several crises around the globe, the Wasp and her Avengers had the additional preoccupation of facing the resurgence of Yellowjacket, who had kidnapped and replaced his Goliath counterpart. Unable to maintain his corporal integrity, Yellowjacket was tended by the Wasp.
At Avengers Mansion, he revealed the truth about Goliath and asked the Wasp to rescue him before both of them vanished. Helped by Triathlon and the Triune Understanding, Janet communed with both Goliath and Yellowjacket, assisting Pym to merge his conflictual psyche. Concurrently, Kang's actions were unstoppable and, among so much destruction, the Wasp had no other choice but to surrender to his will, formally signing Earth's submission to the conqueror. In time, the Wasp and the Avengers reassembled to assault Kang, putting an end to his invasion, though with difficulty.
Yellowjacket and the Wasp stayed active together as Avengers for sporadic missions. They also took opportunities to explore their romance. In Las Vegas, during one of their tours, Pym proposed to Janet, who rejected the idea of being married to him again. The couple was interrupted by a vicious Whirlwind, who was knocked out and detained. Back to the Avengers, the Wasp tried out the growth properties of the Pym Particles, occasionally going on field as Giant-Woman, although she clumsily faced difficulties in transitioning from different sizes. Additionally, her relationship with Pym struggled with her resentment for his past actions and behavior, leading her to seek comfort with her teammate Hawkeye. When Pym learned about his ex-wife's affair with Hawkeye, their relationship was gravely damaged.
One day, when discussing her new relationship with Hawkeye, Janet offhandedly remarked on the Scarlet Witch's lost children, igniting a mental breakdown that caused the Scarlet Witch to turn against the Avengers. Ruined from within, the Avengers experienced several deadly incidents, such as the Wasp being put out of commission by a rampaging She-Hulk. In a deep coma in her micro-sized state, she was tended by Pym.
Recovered and appreciating his care, Janet decided to give another opportunity to the damaged relationship with her ex-husband while the Avengers, being completely destroyed by the Scarlet Witch, disassembled permanently. In order to live a civilian life, Janet accompanied Pym to Oxford. Living in England with Pym proved to be a poor choice for Janet, as the couple realized that they led totally incompatible lifestyles. Their damaged relationship came to an end when Janet abandoned their apartment in the middle of the night. When trying to contact Pym, Janet was surprised by a young woman in their apartment, which inspired her to cut off any ties to Pym. Unbeknownst to Janet, Pym's lover was in fact a Skrull in disguise, who had just succeeded in adopting his identity.
Back to America, Janet refined her studio to create super-hero costumes. As the Wasp, she was summoned alongside other super-humans in a similar fashion such as the Beyonder's secret wars. One of her fellow allies was Pym, whom she still found herself unable to reconcile with. The kidnapped group, being expected to fight to the death by their mysterious kidnapper, were tactically commanded by the Wasp when coming across threats. In a dramatic turn of events, Pym seemingly disintegrated all of his peers, including the Wasp. This provided him with direct contact to their aggressor, the Stranger. Pym then revealed that he had actually shrunk the other heroes down rather than eliminating them, tricking the Stranger. With the help of the new young hero Gravity, who gave his life to ensure their escape, the group was able to return home to Earth.
Supporting the implementation Superhuman Registration Act as a hero who had always been open about her identity, the Wasp joined Iron Man's Pro-Registration Super-Hero Unit. Hosting a reality TV show named America's Newest Superhero, Janet used her popularity to advocate the registration. The ideological differences with Captain America and his opposing Secret Avengers led to a brutal super-hero Civil War. The Wasp was distraught when her long-time friend Bill Foster was killed in battle when opposing Iron Man's forces. At the end of the war, a victorious Iron Man reformed the Avengers under the Initiative program.
Iron Man and Ms. Marvel recruited the winsome Wasp to their a mighty team of Avengers. In their first operation, the Avengers retaliated against the Mole Man and his biological aberrations, who were subsequently stressed out by bizarre weather and geological phenomena. During the battle Iron Man had his armor infected, transforming himself into a cyborg version of Van Dyne. The Wasp realized the Avengers, once again, faced Ultron and, with no other choice, resorted to contacting her ex-husband for help.
Ultron easily outperformed the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D., causing chaos all over the globe with Starktech's weather control technology. Wearing Janet Van Dyne's appearance, he hacked broadcast systems to announce organic life's doomsday. The Avengers decided to act unpredictably by sending one of their own, the god of war Ares, to disable Ultron from within at microscopic size. The plan was successful with the Wasp rescuing Ares from a terrible fate at the last minute. Fighting Ultron did little to remedy Van Dyne's ruined friendship with Pym.
Still, he decided to present her with a new growth formula that would allow her to change sizes easily. This new ability came in handy when the Avengers fought a symbiote infestation in Manhattan. The gigantic Wasp was momentarily infected by the aliens but was soon cured by the Avengers, who pinpointed the source of the attack in Latveria. In retaliation, the Avengers invaded Latveria, defeated Doctor Doom and arrested him.
In addition to evil threats, the Avengers also clashed with the outlawed Avengers who avoided registration. The two opposing groups found, however, a common enemy when investigating a Skrull spaceship in the Savage Land, evidence that Earth had been gradually infiltrated by the aliens in the past years. As Skrull sleeper agents were activated all over the world, a invasion was set up. The Avengers were taken back to New York City by Reed Richards to confront the Skrulls in a final battle, when the Wasp learned that Pym was in fact the Skrull warrior named Criti Noll.
In a desperate and suicide attempt to change an imminent defeat, Criti Noll activated his contingency plan: the Wasp. The growth serum given to Van Dyne earlier had been tampered with in order to transform her into a monolithic, explosive bio-weapon on command. To minimize the damage of the Anti-Pym Particles, Thor scattered the Wasp's physical form, supposedly mercy-killing her. Her teammates avenged her death by defeating the remaining Skrulls. Following the war, the real Pym was rescued. In order to honor his late wife's memory, Pym adopted the alias of the Wasp and formed a new team of Avengers.
In fact, the Wasp was not dead, but actually trapped in the Microverse. For a long time she fended for herself, evading enemies with aims of calling for help. She ultimately signaled Avengers Tower using her Avengers' Priority Card. The emergency beacon was received and pinpointed by the original Avengers, who traveled to Microverse to retrieve her. There, they found the ruthless ruler of the area that the Wasp was in, the monstrous Lord Gouzar.
The Avengers escaped Gouzar by subduing his forces, but were followed by him to Earth. In an epic battle, the dictator was knocked out and sent back to his dimension. Returning home safe and sound, the Wasp invited the Avengers, past and present, to celebrate her comeback.
The Wasp's return took place shortly after the war between the Avengers and the X-Men. In order to improve the tense relations between the two groups, the Avengers assembled an uncanny team comprising human and mutant members, the Unity Division. The popular Wasp was invited to join the ranks of the new initiative, based at Avengers Mansion. She confessed to expect dramatic challenges, which were somehow proved true by Rogue's malicious attitude as a mutant Avenger. On the other hand, in team leader's Havok, Janet found a charming teammate. Attempting to improve mutant perspective and collecting funds for the team, Janet designed the "Unity" label, comprising emulating aspects of mutant fashion.
With the detonation of the Terrigen Bomb, latent Inhuman abilities were triggered all over Earth. As a consequence, the Wasp and the Avengers came upon an Inhuman-related incident regarding a gigantic man surrounded by a devastated area with his family and neighbors missing. Based on his explanations, Janet theorized that his Inhuman wife had the ability to transfer matter, enlarging objects by exchanging their mass with others, which would then be shrunken down. The Wasp then arduously returned to the Microverse one more time by being boosted by the Scarlet Witch. After overpowering Lord Gouzar, she rescued the distressed victims.
The Avengers Unity Division met one of their biggest foes in the form of the Apocalypse Twins, mutants who, after being traumatized by their caregiver Kang the Conqueror, intended to obliterate Earth and recreate it as a mutant planet. Their ideals of supremacy caused some of the Avengers, including the Wasp, to mistrust the activities of their mutant teammates, damaging the sense of unity of the group.
The divided team tried to stop the villains independently, facing their vile Horsemen of Death in the process. Although the Wasp performed well against the Sentry for instance, the Avengers could not prevent the Apocalypse Twins from being successful in their genocide. With Earth destroyed by the Celestial Exitar, all mutantkind resettled in Planet X being ruled by Eimin.
As the sole human who had survived the whole ordeal, the Wasp became a fugitive resistance warrior alongside Havok, whom she married. Having only Hank McCoy as an ally, the couple struggle to survive for years, being the only ones who knew about Eimin's true story and unable to time-travel due to a Tachyon Dam device. Moreover, Janet had a child with Havok, named Katie.
One day, when fighting X-Force, Janet was apprehended by Magneto, but not before destroying the Tachyon Dam. The hopeless war could change after Thor and Kang the Conqueror, alongside the latter's Chronos Corps, joined forces with Havok to depose Eimin and restore history. In order to protect Katie from being erased by alterations in the timeline, Kang caused her to be lost in time and space, out of her parents' reach. Meanwhile, the Wasp rejoined her husband in a ruse orchestrated by Eimin. After bringing the fight directly to Eimin and causing her rule to fall, Kang sent the memories of the surviving Avengers to the past in order to prevent Earth from being destroyed.
Back to the past with the knowledge of what would transpire, the Avengers set their plan to stop Exitar in motion. During the mission, the Wasp even managed to convince the Sentry to protect Earth. However, Kang showed his true colors by taking advantage of the situation to absorb Exitar's celestial energies and conquer Earth instead.
Assisted by Immortus and his Infinity Watch, the Avengers defeated Kang at tragic costs: Havok was left severely disfigured and Katie was forever lost in time. For weeks, Janet tried to come to terms with the loss of her daughter with no success. After Havok recovered, the couple was approached by a benevolent Immortus, who, wishing to ease their pain, revealed that Katie could be conceived again but also that a plagued future was coming in the horizon.
Immortus' predictions were confirmed when the Red Skull, after turning Genosha into a mutant concentration camp and ascending as the Red Onslaught, telepathically broadcasted hate all over the world. Avengers and X-Men alike joined forces to defeat the Red Onslaught. During the fight, a magic spell cast by the Scarlet Witch and Doctor Doom accidentally inverted the moral axis of numerous heroes and villains, and the Wasp and other Avengers became tyrants.
Alongside the other inverted Avengers, she dishonestly incapacitated many other heroes. However, she was betrayed by a villainous Captain America, who wished to use her Pym Particles to remove any opposition to his plans. She was retrieved by Havok and the inverted X-Men led by Apocalypse, who stormed the Avengers Tower.
The X-Men planned to detonate a gene bomb which would kill every non-mutant person on Earth. Havok tried to convince his allies to spare the Wasp's life. As the catastrophe was prevented, Havok tried to escape with the Wasp, claiming to have defused the bomb. Realizing his deceit, the Wasp turned on him and rejoined the inverted Avengers to prevent a potential reinversion of the affected heroes and villains. Nevertheless, a reinversion spell was cast, and the Wasp returned to her former self. However, Havok did not, by being shielded by Iron Man. To escape from the heroes, the evil Havok took the Wasp hostage and disappeared.
Somehow, the Wasp managed to break free from Havok and soon rejoined the Avengers, once again working side by side with Pym. Pym exhibited a brand-new extreme intolerance against artificial intelligence, as shown when the Avengers opposed the Descendants and Pym coldly turned them off. Matters escalated when Starfox sought for the Avengers' help since Ultron had taken control of I.S.A.A.C. and Titan, with infectious transmuting spores that carried the Ultron Virus.
The infected Avengers, including the Wasp, were transformed into robotic beings. During the clash, Ultron was stopped by merging with Pym into a single being that fled to space in terror after realizing his contradictory existence. At the Avengers Mansion, Janet organized a funeral for her ex-husband. Being the executor of his estate, Janet decided to treat Pym as legally dead. As part of his testament, she inherited Pym Laboratories and provided Ant-Man with one of Pym's microscopic labs, keeping his legacy of his work alive.
⚡ Happy 🎯 Heroclix 💫 Friday! 👽
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A year of the shows and performers of the Bijou Planks Theater.
Secret Identity: Sarah Rushman
Publisher: Marvel
First appearance: Tales to Astonish #44
(June 1963)
Created by: Stan Lee (writer)
Jack Kirby (artist)
Obviously the centre of all attention is the Center Stage made of bamboo structure with aluminium zinc roof.
During the first week of July, nightly performance of Chinese Opera dedicated to the Gods and spirits takes place at the Center Stage. It has also become a free entertainment for the public.
Not only does this podium provides entertainment for the visitors, it is believed the spiritual buddies enjoy it even more so. In fact, the front row is often vacant out and reserved for the spirits.
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The Ghost Festival, also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Yu Lan is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday celebrated by Chinese in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (鬼月), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm.
Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (in spring) and Chung Yeung Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, on Ghost Day, the deceased are believed to visit the living.
On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the realm of the living are open and both Taoists and Buddhists would perform rituals to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Intrinsic to the Ghost Month is ancestor worship, where traditionally the filial piety of descendants extends to their ancestors even after their deaths.
Activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors
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More images of the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival
More Chinese Temples images here:
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Photo shot with Photo shot with Nikon D600 + AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED
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---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
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Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
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this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
Ezio Famà.
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questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
Ezio Famà.
Two OCs inspired by 1950's action comics, when heroes could still kill things with guns, and the villains were almost exclusively freaky mutants.
Douglas Callaghan was a down-on-his-luck minifigure before adopting his crime-fighting identity. Once he happened to be stopped on a desert highway, and was unluckily caught between some fleeing grey aliens and the government agents that were tracking their saucer. Shot in the crossfire, the soon-to-be Mister Nuke was actually rescued by the aliens, who miraculously saved his life by transplanting one of their dead's healthy respiratory systems into his body, as his own esophagus and lungs had been shredded by bullets. They also crafted and fitted him with a synthetic suit covering him from the jaw down that appeared to assist with mobility.
The aliens' generosity only extended so far, however; they beamed Douglas back down to the planet, leaving him to be hunted by men in dark suits. During his time on the run, the survivor realized his physiology had changed; his skin, now nigh impenetrable, yet unnaturally pliable. This allowed him to survive deadly falls, squeeze through tight spaces, outlast opponents in fights, etc, in his life as a fugitive. Further investigation of his acquired powers told him his new set of lungs extracted minuscule radioactivity from his surroundings, mutating his minifig cells. The suit the aliens had granted him included a function of absorbing excess radiation, which he could then release through the chest plate as a sonic boom. The wave of atomic energy uncontrollably transmutes substances in its path into random elements, generally gases.
A walking biohazard with zero lifesaving or survival skills, the self-named Mister Nuke completed his ensemble with an aviator helmet heirloom, utility belt, and the usual heroic cape (that he's convinced himself has glide capabilities, but it totally doesn't), and, with his jaded perspective of the world, set out to put a stop to both shady government activity and alien evildoers alike, all the while still a wanted man. Neither a strategist with a sound plan of attack, nor a patient sort, Mister Nuke prefers to just kind of... unleash.
Arthropoid, the minifigure on the right of the image, is just one of the numerous abominations Mister Nuke deals with. It spits acid, can suction its way up skyscrapers, and its claws can pierce even Nuke's hide! Mister Nuke refers to it as "Arthur".
This is perfect for the League of Lego Heroes group, which is dedicated to superhero minifigures not connected to Marvel, DC or any existing comic.
The Final Transmutation is a rare spectacle of nature which occurs solely in the hardest of winters. Only the oldest Dryads then transform into an Old One - a Dryad deity. This may even involve a sex change as it did in this case when Fiérce, the oldest of the Sylvaneth Sisters, became Fiércc the Dryad God.
I am revisiting some of my figs at the moment. Thanks to "Nicebricks" , who sold me the headpiece, which can be bought as a part of his custom Sauron on his bricklink store.
Yu Lan Offering Ceremony takes place at a local playground, it's about the size of half of a soccer field with four temporary sheds, consists of:
- a reception area
- another one is the altar where monks are singing out prayers for the spirits;
- a shed to place the offerings materials and
- the main building made of bamboo and aluminium roof - the Chinese Opera Stage as seen here in this image.
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The Ghost Festival, also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Yu Lan is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday celebrated by Chinese in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (鬼月), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm.
Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (in spring) and Chung Yeung Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, on Ghost Day, the deceased are believed to visit the living.
On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the realm of the living are open and both Taoists and Buddhists would perform rituals to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Intrinsic to the Ghost Month is ancestor worship, where traditionally the filial piety of descendants extends to their ancestors even after their deaths.
Activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors
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More images of the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival
More Chinese Temples images here:
=====
在香港大多數都是潮籍盂蘭勝會， 廣府的確實比較少見。
一樣是觀音化生，比起潮籍大士爺冠上有着觀音像, 這位廣府大士爺手上就捧著觀音人偶。
華人民間則多採佛教說法，無論是中元盛會，或是各種類型的超度法會與齋醮，多以佛教形式塑造大士爺神像：“頂生二角、青面獠牙，高大威武，頭上還有一尊觀世音菩薩佛像，象徵其代表慈悲的觀音大士”。
大士爺的造型也因為不同習俗而有所不同。應為造價不菲，有些比較小型的法會選擇用畫像代替，心誠責靈, 原意還是一樣的.
The Lord of All Spirits is said to be a second self of the All Merciful Kwan Yin, despite his chilling looks, he is actually the "good guy" who keeps the wandering spirits in line, and to oversee the smooth transition of events at the Hungry Ghosts Festival venue.
This paper crafted statue can reach up to 20 feet tall, it will be burnt at the end of the festival, symbolizing his return to the heavenly realm.
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The Ghost Festival, also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Yu Lan is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday celebrated by Chinese in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (鬼月), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm.
Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (in spring) and Chung Yeung Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, on Ghost Day, the deceased are believed to visit the living.
On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the realm of the living are open and both Taoists and Buddhists would perform rituals to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Intrinsic to the Ghost Month is ancestor worship, where traditionally the filial piety of descendants extends to their ancestors even after their deaths.
Activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors
=====
Follow my rediscovery of the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
For my past visits to the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival
More Chinese Temples images here:
=====
We strive to harness the storms within—the insanity, the sadness, the joy—and transmute them. To deny this calling is to surrender to the madness instead…
Elderly man checking out the list of donations for this ceremony from local residents.
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** Origin and facts of the Hungry Ghost Festival:
The Ghost Festival, also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Yu Lan is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday celebrated by Chinese in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (鬼月), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm.
Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (in spring) and Chung Yeung Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, on Ghost Day, the deceased are believed to visit the living.
On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the realm of the living are open and both Taoists and Buddhists would perform rituals to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Intrinsic to the Ghost Month is ancestor worship, where traditionally the filial piety of descendants extends to their ancestors even after their deaths.
Activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors
=====
More images of the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival
More Chinese Temples images here:
=====
These are the sorts of illustrations that Bruce McCall has transmuted into some hysterically funny paintings for the New Yorker and others.
Or, as I'll be calling her, Steelheart from Silverhawks. Very happy to pick up one for $30 Australian (about 20 bucks USD). About seven inches tall. Can't wait to get some more photos of her, she even comes with a flight stand, such luxury!
Even as a kid I always loved things that flew, birds, aircraft, etc. But especially characters that fly could also fly through the air: Peter Pan, Buzz Lightyear, the Decepticon Seekers, Astroboy, Storm, Kiki, etc. Something about those god-like powers, the transmutation between a creature stuck to the ground and something else that can dwell in the sky, I dunno. It gets me every time.
A somewhat experimental shot of Princess' Lego Speeder Bike. You can see what's solid colour and trans. Shot placed on a light table with a lamp very close under the glass.
from my series that is searching for the optimum context for news to spontaneously to evolve. this could be it!
======
It's the Luner 7th month, which means it's the scariest month in the whole year according to Chinese believes.
As a child I was always warned to be extra cautious: avoid going out at night, never answer when I heard anyone call my name from behind, don't whistle and no mention the word "ghosts" are among the rules during the Ghost Month.
This year I decide to pay a visit to one of the remaining Ghost Month ( which is called "Yu Lan Festival" in the formal term ) to document some of its believes.
So here's the beginning of my first documentation of the Hungry Ghost Festival.
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The Ghost Festival, also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Yu Lan is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday celebrated by Chinese in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (鬼月), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm.
Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (in spring) and Chung Yeung Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, on Ghost Day, the deceased are believed to visit the living.
On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the realm of the living are open and both Taoists and Buddhists would perform rituals to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Intrinsic to the Ghost Month is ancestor worship, where traditionally the filial piety of descendants extends to their ancestors even after their deaths.
Activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors
=====
More images of the Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival here:
Hungry Ghosts "Yu Lan" Festival
More Chinese Temples images here:
=====
نقاشیخط، رقم اسماعیل جلایر، حدود 1860 تا 70 میلادی
Calligraphy By Isma’il Jalayir
Geography
Iran
Period
circa 1860-70 CE
Materials and technique
Ink and gouache on paper
Dimensions
35 x 53 cm
Description
Seeming to emerge from a strange landscape bathed in ethereal light, the letters of an invocation to 'Ali ibn al-Husayn, better known as Zayn al-'Abidin, the Shia imam, stand out. The ha and the sin of his father’s name, Husayn, the second Shia imam, who was martyred in Karbala (Irak) in 680 CE, divide the page in two with their long diagonal. The “cuts” of the ya of 'Ali and the final nun of ibn and Husayn form a perfect line alternating with three alifs. On the lower line, the dance of the pen tips - two and one and two again - marks the cadence of the writing. Unfortunately, the page has been trimmed slightly and so the date (on the bottom line to the left) is missing. This page could be likened to another calligraphy attributed to Isma'il Jalayir based on the same model of an inscription in nasta'liq writing style on a blurred background, illustrated with a number of sketches. At the top of the page is an almost unreal architecture which transmutes the models of classical Western architecture: columns, domes and porticos could conjure up an ideal city or an earthly or heavenly palace. In the “cut” of the ya of 'Ali nestled in an ovum are 'Ali, facing front and carrying on his knees the Dhu’l-fiqar sword which the Prophet gave him, flanked by his two sons, Hasan and Husayn. This “spiritual investiture” scene certainly throws light on other scenes: the two Sufis to the right of the word 'Ali, the hunting and beat scenes which could also depict a symbolic pursuit. In the timeless and vaporous landscape, a sun rises directly above the letter lam of 'Ali. The letters appear to be basking in the glow of that light. Jalayir’s style is vaporous, impalpable, with delicate superimpositions, as photographic images. He was trained in the Dar al-funun, in Tehran, and learned calligraphy from Mirza Ghulam Riza. The mark of this progressive institution is clearly felt here: photography, proudly adopted by the sovereign Qajars, was taught as of 1860 CE, along with lithography. The signature of this hearth of new technologies and styles, which was Dar al-funun, is visible in Jalayir’s work through the skilful mix of calligraphy - archetypal art - and painstakingly precise miniature painting, to the extent that its vaporous appearance resembles contemporary photographs developed on albumen paper. On the other side, one can see the floating image of a bearded man wearing an Astrakhan hat, painted with light strokes in grey monochrome, recalling the lithography that became fashionable under the Qajars.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
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Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
-------------------------------------------------------------------
this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
Ezio Famà.
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questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
Ezio Famà.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
-------------------------------------------------------------------
this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
Ezio Famà.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
Ezio Famà.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
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Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
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this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
Ezio Famà.
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questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
Ezio Famà.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
-------------------------------------------------------------------
this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
Ezio Famà.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
Ezio Famà.
ENTER the DRAGON...
The ouroboros is an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon eating its own tail. The ouroboros entered Western tradition via ancient Egyptian iconography and the Greek magical tradition. It was adopted as a symbol in Gnosticism and Hermeticism and most notably in ALCHEMY.
Ref: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ouroboros
An ouroboros from a 1478 drawing in an alchemical tract.
Ancient Egypt - the Tomb of Tutankhamun
One of the earliest known ouroboros motifs is found in the Enigmatic Book of the Netherworld, an ancient Egyptian funerary text in KV62, the tomb of Tutankhamun, in the 14th century BCE.
DRAGONS In ALCHEMY:
Symbolism of Two Hermaphrodites - 15th-century German alchemical documents.
Some Dictionary Definitions of Alchemy:
⦁a medieval chemical science and speculative philosophy aiming to achieve the transmutation of the base metals into gold, the discovery of a universal cure for disease, and the discovery of a means of indefinitely prolonging life
⦁a power or process that changes or transforms something in a mysterious or impressive way
⦁an inexplicable or mysterious transmuting
SUN and MOON symbolism is a frequent theme in Alchemical texts.
A reference to SOL(o)MON's Temple perhaps, where the ARK of the COVENANT is kept - the CONTRACT of the ARCH.
The Twin Pillars of Jachin and Boaz.
The ALCHEMical fusion of male and female to create a parthenogenic ‘HYBRID’.
The Chemical Wedding of Man and Woman, Mater and Pater, Sun and Moon, Mona and Lisa…
SOVEREIGN – to reign from above – the ‘HIGH BRID(e)’ – the monARCH.
SUPERIUS – The HYBRID(e) – monARCH – Sovereign – GOLD
INFERIUS – Man and Woman – LEAD
Figure 12 from "Hermaphrodite Child of the Sun and Moon" by Johann Augustin Brunnhofer (1752)
Alchemical DRAGON from “Hermaphrodite Child of the Sun and Moon” by Johann Augustin Brunnhofer (1752)
The word 'DRAGON' is 13th century.
'DRAGON' entered the English language in the early 13th century from Old French word, 'DRAGON'.
ANDROGynous, however, is a much older word - from Latin androgynus, from Greek androgynos "hermaphrodite, male and female in one; womanish man".
ANDROGynous - a mixed up DRAGON.
Most interestingly, it requires very little or no translation in a significant number of languages - a UNIVERSAL word of sorts.
The definition of CATHOLIC - COMPREHENSIVE, UNIVERSAL.
The suggestion of this post is therefore that DRAGONs are used as symbolism for a 'SUPERIOR' monARCHical HYBRID ANDROGynous ROYAL BLOODLINE descended from the EGYPTIAN PHaraohs.
After all, the ancient Egyptian OSIRIS myth is all about ISIS conceiving HORUS without a PHallus - the original immaculate conception.
HORUS - the WIDOW's SON.
Christianity is merely a continuation of the worship of these ANDROGynous ROYAL BLOODLINES.
DRAG ACTS
The term "DRAG" refers to the performance of exaggerated masculinity, femininity, or other forms of gender expression, usually for entertainment purposes. Drag usually involves cross-dressing. A drag queen is someone who performs femininity and a drag king is someone who performs masculinity.
pubastrology.files.wordpress.com/2023/05/v-for-victory-v1...
A Kind of Bright Darkness
There is a stile still standing in the ghost
of a hedge, and a broken gate beside it, opening
on the pathless nowhere of a ploughed field.
I don't walk there; nor do I retrace my steps
down the route I did not take to get here.
Cuckoos are silent, so next time, I must be
gone. The nearer ground has lapsed to shadow;
the middle distance echoes with a kind of bright
darkness, as though the slow alchemy of sun
and soil has not made gold, but crumbling crusts
of verdigris. The sky is strewn, as at an augury,
with molten copper: to scry it is to go blind.
This aching transmutation of light into a sightless
knowing is all that I can give you: my hands and feet
have vanished. No one walks. The landscape is in flux.
Poem by Giles Watson, 2013. Folklore insists that if you hear the song of the cuckoo, you will be in the same place again next year. The title is a quotation from the shortest and best review my poems have received: "He has a wonderful sensibility for the layered British landscape and for a kind of bright darkness", by Vahni Capildeo.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
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this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.
It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
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questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
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Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
-------------------------------------------------------------------
this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
Ezio Famà.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
Ezio Famà.
---- Angels & Demons (devil tries to tempt Saint Lucia, August 2018, Savoca - Sicily) ----
---- Angeli & Demoni (il demonio tenta Santa Lucia, agosto 2018, Savoca - Sicilia) ----
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Qi Bo's photos on Flickr Hive Mind
www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...
www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...
-------------------------------------------------------------------
this is a photographic narration that speaks of the eternal struggle that takes place between good and evil, which speaks of a dark period of history, speaks of the violence suffered by women but also by those who belonged to the poorest social classes, historical facts that have been handed down to us in the form of a story and associated-transmuted in the martyrdom of Saint Lucia, this is what happens in the town of Savoca (Sicily). This is a short and long report, I did in Savoca on August 2018 about the living representation of the martyrdom of Saint Lucia (patron saint of the city of Savoca); the cult of the young Saint of Syracuse seems to date back to the fifteenth century, under the influence of Spanish traditions. The commemoration of the history of St. Lucia occurs in two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday: here I try to tell some times of the day on Sunday, a day during which the festival is held at the height of her beauty. And 'This is a historical event which speaks of Demons and Angels: Saint Lucy refused to marry a rich and powerful suitor (Lucy declared She was married in Christ), which reported the Christian faith of Lucia to prefect Pascasio that ordered his Praetorian Guard to drag Lucia with a rope to a place of prostitution; legend has it that the Holy became heavy, they then tried to drag it with the help of oxen, but it was impossible to move it from where he stood; failing in this, it was then given the order to cavarle eyes, but the young martyr (native of Syracuse) her eyes reappeared.
In the village of Savoca a young girl, affectionately called the "Lucy" is carried on the shoulder of a porter along the streets of the country (sitting on a pillow tied on the shoulder of a man, but in fact men are two); the young Saint remains impassive in the face of demonic temptations: the Devil, called in Sicilian dialect "u Diavulazzu, shake, shakes, turns his pitchfork in an attempt to "distract" the Saint.
The first day of this representation, on Saturday, in an old church in Savoca, the two girls who impersonate the Lucia, of the current year and the previous year, meet with the delivery of palm; the traditional event which we witness on Saturday, has all the appearance of an important rehearsal for the next day, on Sunday when the traditional festival will take place in all its beauty.
Sunday: on top of the procession there are the "Jews" (the emissaries of the prefect Pascasio) along with some Angels, is located immediately after the wagon drawn by two cows from which branches off a rope that will arrive to Saint Lucia (a girl of six years); between her and the cows there are Roman soldiers, who make their way through the crowd squirming like crazy; to hold the rope there are also male figures; the job of Devil (his mask is made of wood, whose invoice is dated, it seems, of the 400') is to distract the little Saint with the help of a long stick equipped of curved points, called "u 'croccu": Lucia hardly is deceived by the promises of the evil one, she will not abandon the state of her property concentration, aided in this by staring, almost in a trance, a small palm branch in silver , she brings devoutly in her hands.It's very important to mention the Baron Baldassarre (nicknamed Baron Altadonna), who applied without any hesitation the practice of Jus de seigneur: using this law the Baron obliged the young brides to spend the wedding night in his alcove. It 'very possible that in the representation of Saint Lucia of Savoca the character of the Devil tempting young Santa with his pitchfork, in reality is nothing but himself, Baron Altadonna, so allegorically described in this traditional Sicilian feast: the figure of the Devil if one takes into account what historians relate, does not belong more to the legend, but sadly to actual event happened. Post scriptum: the photographs, realized both on Saturday and Sunday, were organized and posted without taking into account the temporal chronology of what happened during the two days of the event; two photos of the mummy of Baron Altadonna have been included, which is located in the crypt of the Capuchin Fathers of Savoca; the portraits of two "Lucie" from previous editions, grandfather and great-grandfather of the "DIAVOLI" dynasty were included; the "silver palm" was delivered by Lucia of 2016 (Valentina), to the current Lucia (Miriana), in 2017 the event was not performed.
Ezio Famà.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
questa è una narrazione fotografica che parla dell'eterna lotta che avviene tra il bene ed il male, che parla di un periodo buio della storia, che parla delle violenze subite dalle donne ma anche da coloro che appartenevano alle classi sociali più povere, fatti storici che sono stati tramandati fino a noi in forma di racconto ed associati-trasmutati nel martirio di Santa Lucia, questo è quanto accade nel paese di Savoca (Sicilia). Questo è un report corto e lungo, che ho realizzato in quel di Savoca lo scorso mese di Agosto 2018, su quella che è la rappresentazione vivente del martirio di Santa Lucia (Santa patrona della città di Savoca); il culto della giovane Santa di Siracusa sembra risalire al XV secolo, sotto l'influenza delle tradizioni spagnole. La rievocazione vivente della storia di S.Lucia avviene in due giornate consecutive, il sabato e la domenica: qui tento di raccontare alcuni momenti della giornata della domenica, giorno durante il quale la festa si svolge nel pieno della sua bellezza. E' questa una rievocazione storica che parla di Demoni ed Angeli: la storia rievoca di quando la Santa, si rifiutò di andare in sposa ad un suo ricco e potente pretendente (essendosi dichiarata Cristiana e sposa in Cristo), il quale per vendetta riferì della fede Cristiana di Lucia al prefetto Pascasio; costui diede ordine ai suoi pretoriani di trascinare Lucia con una corda fino ad un lupanare, un luogo di prostituzione; la leggenda narra che la Santa divenne pesantissima, si tentò allora di trascinarla con l'ausilio dei buoi, ma fu impossibile smuoverla da dove si trovava; non riuscendo in ciò, fu allora dato l'ordine di cavarle gli occhi, ma alla giovane martire (nativa di Siracusa) gli occhi le rispuntarono. Nel paese di Savoca una giovane ragazza, chiamata con affetto "la Lucia" viene portata in spalla lungo le vie del paese (seduta su di un cuscino legato sulla spalla di un uomo; in realtà gli uomini portatori sono due, dandosi il cambio l'un l'altro); la giovane Santa rimane impassibile di fronte alle tentazioni demoniache: il Diavolo, chiamato in dialetto siciliano "u Diavulazzu, agita, scuote, fa ruotare il suo forcone nel tentativo di "distrarre" la Santa ma, vani saranno i suoi tentativi. Il primo giorno di questa rappresentazione, il sabato, in una vecchia chiesa di Savoca, le due bambine che impersonano la Lucia, dell'anno in corso e dell'anno precedente, si incontrano con la consegna della palma da una bimba all'altra; l'evento tradizionale al quale si assiste il sabato, ha tutto l'aspetto di una importante prova generale per il giorno dopo, quando la domenica la festa tradizionale avverrà in tutta la sua bellezza.La domenica: in cima alla processione ci sono i "Giudei" (gli emissari del prefetto Pascasio) insieme ad alcuni Angeli, subito dopo si trova il carro tirato da due giumente dalle quali si diparte una corda che giungerà fino a cingere il fianco della bimba che impersona Santa Lucia (una bambina di sei anni); tra lei e le giumente ci sono i soldati Romani, che si fanno largo tra la folla dimenandosi a più non posso; a tenere la corda ci sono anche delle figure maschili che evitano che gli strattonamenti dei soldati romani possano giungere fino alla Santa (ricordiamolo, che è legata a quella corda); davanti alla Santa piroetta il diavolo tentatore, u' Diavulazzu (la maschera è in legno, la cui fattura è datata, sembra, del 400'), il cui compito è quello di distrarre la piccola Santa con l'aiuto di un lungo bastone dotato di punte ricurve, chiamto dialettalmente "u' croccu": Lucia difficilmente si lascerà ingannare dalle promesse del Maligno, non abbandonerà quel suo stato di immobile concentrazione, aiutata in ciò dal fissare, quasi in stato di trance, un piccolo ramo di palma in argento, che lei strige devotamente tra le sue mani. E’ fondamentale menzionare tra i vari personaggi storici della tradizione, il barone Baldassarre, vissuto in Savoca in epoca medioevale, soprannominato barone Altadonna, che applicava senza remora alcuna la pratica della Jus primae noctis: avvalendosi di questa legge il barone obbligava le giovani spose a trascorrere la prima notte di nozze nella sua alcova. E’ fortemente ipotizzabile che nella rappresentazione di Santa Lucia di Savoca il personaggio del Diavolo che tenta la giovane Santa col suo forcone, in realtà non sia altro che egli stesso, il barone Altadonna, così allegoricamente descritto nella festa tradizionale siciliana: la figura del Diavolo, se si tiene conto di quanto narrano gli storici, non apparterrebbe più alla leggenda, ma a questo tristo personaggio realmente vissuto, che usava quotidianamente la moneta della prepotenza. Post scriptum: le fotografie, realizzate sia il sabato che la domenica, sono state organizzate e postate senza tenere conto della cronologia temporale di quanto avvenuto nei due giorni della manifestazione; sono state inserite due foto della mummia del barone Altadonna, che si trova nella cripta dei Padri Cappuccini di Savoca; sono stati inseriti i ritratti di due "Lucie" delle precedenti edizioni, del nonno e del bisnonno della dinastia dei "DIAVOLI"; la "palma d'argento" è stata consegnata dalla Lucia del 2016 (Valentina), alla attuale Lucia (Miriana); nel 2017 la manifestazione non è stata eseguita.
Ezio Famà.
Some more fun inside this amazing art installation at Bombay Beach.
Photos and light painting by Katrina Brown. A little bit of post-processing by me.
An art installation by Jeff Frost, it's a tribute to two local artists that took their lives in 2021. The color palette is composed of their favorite colors.