View allAll Photos Tagged dedicated
.
This Image is dedicated to my flcikr Friend WAVE
Pay Visit to my: Getty Image // Face Book// Red Bubble // My Album at National Geography [NGA]
And also visit my Images fromFrame BANGLADESH Here
****************************************************
NO Self promotion by Image / HTML or WEB Links
Do Not post any Graphics or Invitations ,
None from my contact Likes it ,
Also Avoid Round Up Comments Copy & Pest .plz
_______________________________________
Description :
Image Serial No#534007062011-HDR
This Upload is symbolic, I was disappointed to see some people commenting on one of my flcikr contact 's Image, This was Unexpected form a cultural minded photogrpher, One has his/ her own perspetive, and other may / may not agree, we must know how to comment back and impose own likeness on others, thats also an art, I have an article DOING A PHOTO CRITIQUE here Plz read if you have some time,
It'/s Important now to Lean Flickr , Customs & Etiquette and should make a community of same minded, There are many mind in flcikr but basically two types, one, those who like to play game in the group and post logs and enjoy, even count who has the maximum logos, and the other one
they do not like graphics and only make sens within the image and text, , in-bwtween those who are a mixtue of both , may be they are not yet tuned up with the flikr customs,
Photography is an art and expression/ reading and getting in to an Image on photograph also an art, No reason to teach someone if you are a new friend or not a contact, b coz S/he may not accept you even a good valued words, one better avoid such and make a comfortabele zone,
I always sugesst to ignore such comments and may remove comments first and repeted doing so may block and be safe from such an idiot,
I came accrros a few of them and Now I put then in my Block list,
It'/s impotant to Tie same minded people to be comfortable in flcikr, wise man think befor and do the one as like a spider do for their nest, Hope you stay with me,
Standing on Woodrow Wilson Plaza in the Federal Triangle complex, looking at the sign indicating the home of the Woodrow Wilson Center in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center.
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (or Wilson Center) was established as part of the Smithsonian Institution by an act of Congress in 1968. The center fosters research, discussion, and forums on the link between national and world affairs.
In 1924, the Public Buildings Commission recommended that a new series of federal office buildings be built near the White House. The plan called for a complex of buildings to be built at "Murder Bay" -- a muddy, flood-prone, malaria-ridden, poverty-stricken region lacking in paved roads, sewer system, and running water and almost exclusively home to numerous brothels and an extensive criminal underclass.
Plans called for two buildings with hemicycles to face one another across a vast public plaza. The Post Office building was occupied on May 6, 1934, but funding cuts caused by the Great Depression meant that the other building never was built. Instead, a vast, ugly above-ground parking lot occupied the site.
A bill was passed (almost unanimously) by Congress on August 7, 1987, to provide $362 million for the construction of an "International Cultural and Trade Center" on the parking lot at Federal Triangle. The plan was to provide office space for both the Justice and State departments. The legislation also provided that although the U.S. government would finance the building, a private developer would construct it. The federal government would lease space from the private developer for 30 years, after which ownership of the building would revert to the government. With 1.4 millon square feet of office space and 500,000 square feet of space for trade center activities, the planned trade center would be larger than any other federally owned building except for The Pentagon.
After numerous design changes, construction began in mid-1989. Contractors estimated the cost of the building at between $550 million and $800 million, far higher than the anticipated $350 million original price tag. Significant cost increases led to the project being mothballed by the George H. W. Bush administration on January 25, 1992.
This decision was reversed on December 2, 1993, by the Clinton administration. Although the building was originally designed to be a major tourist destination and provide a boost to economic development in the downtown area, the building was repurposed to be a simple office building. Rather than a mix of federal and private renters, federal agencies were now scheduled to occupy 80 percent of the office space. The building was named for former President Ronald Reagan in October 1995.
The Ronald Reagan Building opened on May 5, 1998. President Bill Clinton and former First Lady Nancy Reagan dedicated the building. The structure's final cost was $818 million.
Meenakshi Amman Temple (also called: Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, Tiru-aalavaai and Meenakshi Amman Kovil) is a historic Hindu temple located on the southern bank of the Vaigai River in the temple city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is dedicated to Parvati, known as Meenakshi, and her consort, Shiva, here named Sundareswarar. The temple forms the heart and lifeline of the 2,500 year old city of Madurai and is a significant symbol for the Tamil people, mentioned since antiquity in Tamil literature though the present structure was built between 1623 and 1655 CE. It houses 14 gopurams (gateway towers), ranging from 45–50m in height. The tallest is the southern tower, 51.9 metres high, and two golden sculptured vimanas, the shrines over the garbhagrihas (sanctums) of the main deities. The temple attracts 15,000 visitors a day, around 25,000 on Fridays, and receives an annual revenue of sixty million INR. There are an estimated 33,000 sculptures in the temple. It was on the list of top 30 nominees for the "New Seven Wonders of the World". The annual 10-day Meenakshi Tirukalyanam festival, celebrated during April and May, attracts 1 million visitors.
LEGEND
Meenakshi (IAST Mīnākṣī Tamil மீனாட்சி) is an avatar of the Hindu goddess Parvati - the consort of Shiva, one of the few Hindu female deities to have a major temple devoted to her. The name "Mīnachchi" means fish-eyed and is derived from the words "mīna" meaning fish and "akṣi" meaning eyes. The lady goddess Meenakshi is the principal deity of the temple, not Sundareswarar, unlike most Shiva temples in South India where Shiva is the principal deity. According to Hindu legend, in order to answer the prayers of the second Pandya king Malayadwaja Pandya and his wife Kanchanamalai, Parvati appeared out of the holy fire of the Putra Kameshti Yagna (sacrifice for childhood) performed by the king. According to another legend, the goddess herself gave notice to Kanchanamalai in one of her previous births that Kanchanamalai would have the privilege of mothering the goddess. The girl who came out of the holy fire had three breasts. A voice from the heavens told the king not to worry about the abnormality and added that the third breast would vanish as soon as the girl met her future husband. The happy king named the girl "Tadaatagai" and as the heir to the throne, Tadaatagai was trained carefully in all the 64 sastras, the fields of science.
As the time came for Tadaatagai's coronation, she had to wage war in three worlds encompassing eight directions. After conquering Brahma's Abode, Sathyaloka, Vishnu's Abode, Vaikunta, and Devas' abode Amaravati, she advanced to Shiva's Abode Kailasha. She very easily defeated the bhoota ganas (IAST: Bhūtagana, meaning Shiva's army) and Nandi, the celestial bull of Shiva, and headed to attack and conquer Shiva. The moment she looked at Shiva, she was unable to fight and bowed her head down due to shyness, and the third breast vanished immediately. Tadaatagai realized that Shiva was her destined husband. She also realized that she was the incarnation of Parvati. Both Shiva and Tadaatagai returned to Madurai and the king arranged the coronation ceremony of his daughter, followed by her marriage with Shiva.
The marriage was to be the biggest event on earth, with the whole earth gathering near Madurai. Vishnu, the brother of Meenakshi, prepared to travel from his holy abode at Vaikuntam to preside over the marriage. Due to a divine play, he was tricked by the Deva, Indra and was delayed on the way. After the marriage, the pair ruled over Madurai for a long time and then assumed divine forms as Sundareswarar and Meenakshi, the presiding deities of the temple. Following the tradition, every evening, before closing the temple, a ritual procession lead by drummers and a brass ensemble carries the image of Sundareswarar to Meenakshi's bedroom to consummate the union, to be taken back the next morning in dawn. The marriage is celebrated annually as Chithirai Thiruvizha in Madurai. During the period of Nayakar rule in Madurai, the ruler Thirumalai Nayakar linked the festival Azhakar Thiruvizha and the Meenakshi wedding ceremony.
HISTORY
The Meenatchi temple is believed to have been founded by Indra (king of Deva celestial deities) while he was on a pilgrimage to atone for his misdeeds. He felt his burden lifting as he neared the swayambu lingam (self formed lingam, a representation of Shiva used for worship in temples) of Madurai. He ascribed this miracle to the lingam and constructed the temple to enshrine it. Indra worshipped Shiva, who caused golden lotuses to appear in the nearby pool. Tamil literature speaks of the temple over the last two millennia. Thirugnanasambandar, the famous Hindu saint of Saiva philosophy, mentioned this temple as early as the 7th century, and described the deity as Aalavai Iraivan. The temple is believed to have been sacked by the infamous Muslim invader Malik Kafur in 1310 and all the ancient elements were destroyed. The initiative to rebuild the structure was taken by first Nayak king of Madurai, Viswanatha Nayak (1559–1600) under the supervision of Ariyanatha Mudaliar, the prime minister of the Nayak Dynasty and the founder of the Poligar System. The original design by Vishwanatha Nayak in 1560 was substantially expanded to the current structure during the reign of Thirumalai Nayak (1623–55). He took considerable interest in erecting many complexes inside the temple. His major contributions are the Vasantha Mandapam for celebrating vasanthorsavam (spring festival) and Kilikoondu Mandapam (corridor of parrots). The corridors of the temple tank and Meenatchi Nayakar Mandapam were built by Rani Mangammal.
Rous Peter (1786–1828), the Collector of Madurai in 1812, got nickname 'Peter Pandian’ as he respected and treated people of all faiths equally. He donated a set of golden stirrups studded with diamonds and red stones to the temple.Goddess Meenatchi is believed to have saved Rous Peter from a fatal incident. He also wished that after his death, his body be buried in a position that would enable his eyes to face the temple.
THE TEMPLE
ARCHITECTURE
The temple is the geographic and ritual center of the ancient city of Madurai and one of the largest temple complexes in Tamil Nadu. The temple complex is divided into a number of concentric quadrangular enclosures contained by high masonry walls. It is one of the few temples in Tamil Nadu to have four entrances facing four directions. Vishwantha Nayaka allegedly redesigned the city of Madurai in accordance with the principles laid down by Shilpa Shastras (Sanskrit: śilpa śāstra, also anglicized as silpa sastra meaning rules of architecture) relevant to urban planning. The city was laid out in the shape of square with a series of concentric streets culminating from the temple. These squares continue to retain their traditional names, Aadi, Chittirai, Avani-moola and Masi streets, corresponding to Tamil month names. Ancient Tamil classics mention that the temple was the center of the city and the streets happened to be radiating out like lotus and its petals. The temple prakarams (outer precincts of a temple) and streets accommodate an elobrate festival calendar in which dramatic processions circumabulate the shrines at varying distances from the centre. The vehicles used in processions are progressively more massive the further they travel from the centre. The complex is in around 180,000 m2.
GOPURAMS
The temple is surrounded by gopurams (gateway tower), - There are ten gopuram the tallest of which, the famous southern tower, rises to over 52 m and was built in 1559. The oldest gopuram is the eastern one, built by Maravarman Sundara Pandyan during 1216-1238 Each gopuram is a multi-storeyed structure, covered with thousands of stone figures of animals, gods and demons painted in bright hues. The outer gopuram presents steeply pyramidal tower encrusted with plaster figures, while the inner gopuram serves as the entrance to the inner enclosure of Sundareswarar shrine.
SHRINES
The central shrine of Meenakshi Amman temple and her consort Sundareswarar are surrounded by three enclosures and each of these are protected by four minor towers at the four points of the compass, the outer tower growing larger and reaching higher to the corresponding inner one. The Meenakshi shrine has the emerald-hued black stone image of Meenakshi. The Sundareswarar shrine lies at the centre of the complex, suggesting that the ritual dominance of the goddess developed later. Both the Meenakshi and Sundareswarar shrines have gold plated Vimanam (tower over sanctum). The golden top can be seen from a great distance in the west through the apertures of two successive towers. The area covered by the shrine of Sundareswarar is exactly one fourth of the area of the temple and that of Meenakshi is one fourth that of Sundareswarar.
The tall sculpture of Ganesh carved of single stone located outside the Sundareswarar shrine in the path from Meenashi shrine is called the Mukuruny Vinayakar. A large measure of rice measuring 3 kurini (a measure) is shaped into a big ball of sacrifice and hence the Ganesh is called Mukkurni Vinayagar (three kurinis). This deity is believed to be found during a 17th-century excavation process to dig the Mariamman temple tank.
TEMPLE TANK & SURROUNDING PORTICO
The sacred temple tank Porthamarai Kulam ("Pond with the golden lotus"), is 50 m by 37 m in size. According to legend, Shiva promised a stork that no fish or other marine life would grow here and thus no marine animals are found in the lake. In the Tamil legends, the lake is supposed to judge the worth of a new piece of literature. Authors place their works here and the poorly written works are supposed to sink and the scholastic ones are supposed to float, Tirukkural by Tiruvalluvar was one such work.
Only a fraction of 17th and 18th century paintings of Nayak period survives and one such portion is found in the small portico on the western side of the tank. It depicts the marriage of Sundareswarar and Meenkashi attended by Vijayaranga Chokkanatha and Rani Mangammal. The painting is executed on a vivid red background, with delicate black linework and large areas of white, green and ochre. The celestial couple is seated inside an architectural frame with a flowering tree in the background.
HALLS
The corridor surrounding the sanctum the Meenakshi is called kilikoondu Mandapam ("bird cage corridor"). The space was once used to keep green parrots that were trained to utter the name of Meenakshi. There are two large cages full of squawking green parrots.
The Kambatadi Mandapam ("Hall of temple tree") with its seated Nandi (sacred bull) has various manifestations of Shiva carved and also contains the famous "Marriage of Meenakshi" sculpture. Sculptures of Shiva and Kali trying to out-dance one another are pelted with balls of ghee by devotees. A golden flagstaff with 32 sections symbolizes the human backbone and is surrounded by various gods, including Durga and Siddar.
The Puthu Mandapam ("new hall") constructed by Tirumala Nayak contains large number of sculptures. It is situated opposite to the east gopuram.
The Ashta Shakthi Mandapam ("Hall of eight goddess") is the first hall in the entrance of Meenakshi shrine tower near to East Tower. Ashta indicates eight and Shakthi refers to goddess - the hall has statues of eight goddesses. The gopurams (towers) can be viewed from this hall. The passage was named for eight forms of goddess Sakthi carved on its pillars. Other sculptures and paintings depict the Tiruvilayadal (holy games of Shiva). The sculptures of heroes of Mahabharata, the Pancha pandavas can be seen in the Pancha Pandava Mandapam (Hall of Pandavas).
The Viravasantharaya Mandapam is a large hall with huge corridors. To the south of this hall is the kalyana mandapam, to the south of the pillared hall, is where the marriage of Shiva and Parvati is celebrated every year during the Chithirai Festival in mid-April. The golden images of Meenakshi and Sundareswarar are carried into the 16th century oonjal mandapam (swing corridor) and placed on the swing every Friday at 5:30 p.m. The shrine has a 3-storied gopuram guarded by two stern dwarapalakas (guardians) and supported by golden, rectangular columns that bear lotus markings. Along the perimeter of the chamber, granite panels of the divine couple are present. The hall is situated in the western bank of the temple tank.
The Mudali Pillai Mandapam or Iruttu Mandapam (Dark hall) is a wide and long hall built by Muthu Pillai during 1613. On the pillars of the halls, there are fine sculptures depicting the story of Shiva taking the form of Bikshadanar to teach the sages a lesson.
The Mangayarkarasi mandapam is a newly built hall situated opposite to the marriage halls and bears the name of saindy queen, Mangayarkarasi who contributed to Saivism and Tamil language. To the south of Mangayarkarasi mandapam lies the Servaikarar Mandapam, a hall built by Marudu brothers in 1795. The Nagara mandapam (Hall of beating drums) lies opposite to Sundareswarar shrine was built by Achaya Rayar, the minister of Rani Mangammal in 1635. The Kolu Mandapam is a hall for displaying dolls during the Navarathri festival celebrated during September–October. This hall is situated in the second corridor of the Meenakshi shrine at the western side.
HALL OF THOUSAND PILLARS
The Meenakshi Nayakkar Mandapam ("Hall of 1000 pillars") has two rows of pillars carved with images of yali (mythological beast with body of lion and head of an elephant), commonly used as the symbol of Nayak power. It is situated to the north of Sundareswarar flag staff hall. The Thousand Pillar Hall contains 985 (instead of 1000) carved pillars. The hall was built by Ariyanatha Mudaliar in 1569 and blends engineering skill and artistic vision. Ariyanatha Mudaliar was prime minister and general of Viswanatha Nayak, the first Nayaka of Madurai (1559–1600). He was also the founder of Poligar System, the quasi-feudal organization of the country dividing it into multiple palayams or small provinces in which each palayam was ruled by a palayakkarar or a petty chief. At the entrance of the hall is the statue of Ariyanatha Mudaliar seated on a horse-back, flanking one side of the entrance to the temple. The statue is periodically garlanded by worshippers. Each pillar in the hall is a carved monument of the Dravidian sculpture. The more prominent among the carved figures are those of Rati (wife of Kama), Karthikeya, Ganesha, Shiva as a wandering mendicant and endless number of yalis (mythical figures of lions). There is a Temple Art Museum in the hall where icons, photographs, drawings, and other exhibits of the 1200 years old history of the temple are displayed. Just outside this hall, towards the west, are the Musical Pillars. Each pillar, when struck, produces a different musical note.
RELIGIOUS SIGNIFANCE OF THE TEMPLE
A distinct feature of Meenakshi in terms of iconography is the presence of parrot in her right hand. The parrot is generally associated with the Vaishnava azhwar saint Andal. "Pancha Sabhai" refers to the five royal courts of Nataraja (dancing form of Shiva) where he performed cosmic dance. The Tamil word velli means silver and ambalam means stage or altar. This massive Nataraja sculpture is enclosed in a huge silver altar and hence called "Velli Ambalam" (silver abode). This is a special figure of Natarja which usually differs from Chola bronzes; in the Chola images, Nataraja is shown dancing with his left leg raised, but this sculpture has the right leg raised. According to the Tiruvilayaadal Puranam (Shiva's sacred games), this is on the request of Rajasekara Pandya, who was a sincere devotee of Shiva. He requested the deity to change his position, as he felt that keeping the same foot raised would put enormous strain and got a graceful acquiescence from the divine master.
RITUALS
WORSHIP
There are close to 50 priests in the temple who perform the puja (rituals) during festivals and on a daily basis. Like other Shiva temples of Tamil Nadu, the priests belong to Shivaite to the Adishaivas, a Brahmin sub-caste. The priests live in a closed area north of the temple. The temple has a six time pooja calendar everyday, each comprising four rituals namely abhisheka (sacred bath), alangaram (decoration), neivethanam (food offerings) and deepa aradanai (waving of lamps) for both Meenakshi and Sundareswarar. The puja (worship) ceremonies are held amidst music with nadhaswaram (pipe instrument) and tavil (percussion instrument), religious instructions in the Vedas by priests and prostration by worshippers in front of the temple mast. The common practise is to worship Meenakshi before Sundareswarar. Margazhi (December–January) ritual is prominent one for winning a perfect, god-like husband - it is Meenakshi's ennai kappu festival. Aligned with the cardinal points, the street plans forms a giant mandala (group) whose sacred properties are believed to be activated during the mass clockwise circumambulation of the central temple.
FESTIVALS
The most important festival associated with the temple is the "Meenakshi Thirukalyanam" (the divine marriage of Meenakshi) that is celebrated in April every year. The wedding of the divine couple is regarded as a classic instance of south Indian female-dominated marriage, an arrangement referred as "Madurai marriage". The male dominated marriage is called "Chidambaram marriage", referring to Shiva's uncontested dominance, ritual and mythic, at the famous Shiva temple of Chidhambaram. The marriage brings together rural and urban people, deities and mortals, Saivas (those who worship Shiva) and Vaishnavas (those who worship Vishnu) in order to celebrate Meenakshi as the royal monarch. During the one month period, there are a number of events including the "Ther Thiruvizhah" (chariot festival) and "Theppa Thiruvizhah" (float festival). Major Hindu festivals like Navrathri and Shivrathri are celebrated in the temple. Like most Shakti temples in Tamil Nadu, the Fridays during the Tamil months of Aadi (July–August) and Thai (January–February) are celebrated in the temple by thousands of devotees. "Avani Moola Utsavam" is a 10-day festival mainly devoted to Sundareswarar describes his various Thiruvilayadal meaning Shiva's sacred games.
LITERARY MENTION
Down the centuries, the temple has been a centre of education of Tamil culture, literature, art, music and dance. All three assemblies of Tamil language, the Tamil Sangam (about the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE), were held at Madurai. Tamil poets of different epochs participated in these assemblies and their composition is called Sangam literature. During the third Tamil sangam, the comparative merit of the poets was decided by letting the works float in the lotus tank of the temple. It was believed that a divine force would cause the work of superior merit to float on the surface while the inferior literary work would sink. Tevaram, the 7th-8th century Tamil canonoical work on Shiva, are works by the three prominent Nayanars (Saivites) namely Appar, Sundarar and Thirugnanasambandar. The temple has been glorified by the hymns of Tevaram by all the three poets. Different hymns of Sambandar on the temple mention the queen of Pandya Nadu, his desire to defeat Jains in debate, the miracles performed by him curing the king's fever, the Jains' provocation of Sambandar by burning his house and challenging him to debate, and Sambandar's eventual victory over them. A poem from the Third Tirumurai by Sambandar is as under –
"Lady who has eyes that are comparable to the startled eyes of the deer!
the great chief queen of the Vaḻuti! listen to what I say. Do not feel distressed that I am such a young boy from whose mouth milk is flowing. when the god in Tiruvālavāy stands by my side as help, I can not be easily defeated by the low people who inflict many sufferings on others and who live in hills beginning with great Āṉaimalai."
There are few poets in Tamil history who sang about goddess Parvati. The notable among them is Kumaraguruparar, a 17th-century Tamil poet, who composed Meenakshi Pillaitamil on Meenakshi of this temple. King Tirumalai Nayak's patronage of Kumaraguruparar has an important place in the history of pillaitamil (a genre of Tamil literature). Kumaraguruparar visited a lot of temples and when he visited this temple, he composed Meenakshi pillaitamil on Meenakshi. Legend has it that goddess appeared in the dreams of Nayak directing him to arrange the recital of Kumaraguruparar before a learned assembly. The king made elobrate arrangements for the event. Meenakshi impersonated herself in the form of a small girl and enjoyed the recital. As Kumaraguruparar was explaining the 61st verse, the goddess appreciated by garlanding the poet with a string of pearls and disappeared.
WIKIPEDIA
St Botolph Aldersgate, London
The eastern half of the City had four churches dedicated to St Botolph, each at one of the City gates, a reminder that St Botolph is traditionally the patron Saint of travellers and wayfarers. Three of the churches survive, and this is one of them.
St Botolph without Aldersgate sits on the corner of Aldersgate Street and Little Britain, across the road from the Museum of London, with Postman's Park wrapped around the other two sides of it. The medieval church was undamaged by the Great Fire, but when Aldersgate Street was widened in the late 18th Century the church was knocked down and rebuilt by Nathaniel Wright. The new church is modest, but in a good way, an introspective moment before the modernist noise of London Wall and the Barbican kick in.
For many years this church was hardly ever open. It is home to a particularly evangelical congregation, and the church's only services, the so-called Aldersgate Talks on Tuesday lunchtimes, are focused on the exegesis of Bible passages for the benefit of those who like that kind of thing best. I was quite excited to find the church open on a Saturday morning a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, there was a meeting on inside - lots of very earnest looking men in black suits who glared at me when I poked my head around the door. They didn't look very welcoming, so I fled.
However, all that has changed. St Botolph now partly serves as the visitor centre for Christian Heritage London, who have put up a sequence of display boards which detail a fairly fundamentalist protestant history of Christianity from the First Century (very good) to the Twentieth Century (very bad). So for the modest sum of one pound you may enter the church and read them. The exhibition is open every day except Tuesday and Sunday.
And the church? Well, after all that fuss about getting in I must admit that I was a little disappointed, I'm afraid. The ceiling is gorgeous, great sugary fondants of plaster swelling and dripping in geometric patterns. And the east end is lovely, the apse beautifully decorated, although of course the altar has been removed and the space turned into a meeting area. It was rebuilt further west in 1829 to facilitate more road-widening, but appears to have retained Wright's design, albeit updated later by the Victorians. Otherwise it appears an almost entirely 18th Century interior.
However, successive generations have not served it well. The 19th Century glass in the north windows by Ward & Hughes is not good, its preachy gallery style quite out of harmony with the decoration, and the post-war Farrar Bell scenes of events in evangelical history on the south side are pedestrian at best. The glass up in the clerestories looks better, though perhaps only because it is further away. And the modern congregation has gutted the furnishings, replacing them with modern chairs that are turned away from the east towards a side wall in the protestant manner. Perhaps the best thing of all is the sequence of good, interesting memorials which date back over four hundred years, although you may need to discretely move some of the display boards to get to them.
Dedicated to Randy Pausch (October 23, 1960 - July 25, 2008). He once remarked, "Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted." This picture represents that to me for a number of reasons. If you have the time, I recommend watching "The Last Lecture: Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams". You won't be disappointed.
While on vacation a few weeks ago, I decided to take along my large format camera. I took a number of pictures and sent them off to be developed by a company on the east coast. I was quite disappointed when I got them back. Something had gone wrong during the development of the negatives. The color was REALLY off and virtually all of them had a strong cyan cast throughout the image. This was one of the images that was least affected by the problem. I was disappointed, but not discouraged. I let the damaged negatives be an opportunity to learn C-41 development myself. It has been something that I have been interested in trying, but never had the courage to try for fear of it being too complicated.
Part of the reason that I don't shoot much color film in medium or large format is the long turn around time between taking pictures and the time that I get them back under the scanner. The other part is that it is somewhat prohibitively expensive to have someone else develop large format color negatives. So I ordered some chemicals and figured it out! Last weekend I shot up some test 35mm film and developed them myself in the bathtub. Basically, I got it right minus forgetting to rinse them in tempered distilled water at the very end.
I'm waiting on getting a MOD54 film holder so that I can reasonably do color film development of large format negatives. I will do a bit more testing with medium format and iron out any problems before moving on to develop large format. There are those who say that if you can develop black and white film, you can develop color film. I'd say that it is true, but it is much more difficult unless you have an automated way of maintaining an exact temperature. Otherwise, it adds significant complexity to the process.
I'm also excited to get the MOD54 film holder so that I can use Rodinal as a black and white developer with Acros 100 large format film. I love Rodinal and Acros 100 in medium format! The problem with the BTZS tubes that I use for developing black and white large format film is the 2 oz of developer that are used for each sheet of film. While being cost effective for most developers, it is an insufficient volume of developer for Rodinal at 1:50. I look forward to trying that film/developer combination in the near future in large format.
f/22 -- 1/2 sec
Kodak Ektar 100 (4x5 format)
taken with Toyo 45AII with 150mm f/5.6 Apo-Sironar-N Lens
Scanned with Epson Perfection V750 PRO
my identifier: trail b flickr
The brass dedication plaque beneath the window reads:-
This window is dedicated to the glory of God and
in loving memory of Jonathan William Woolley
M.A. Vicar of the parishes of Hoveton St John and St
Peter for 20 years. He died the eighth day of January
1907, aged 53.
This window is erected by his widow and relatives.
************TIMELINE*****************
19th March 1853
A family history site has him recorded as born on this day.
freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~simpsont/WOOLL...
As does Alumni Cantabrigienses, Volume 2.
books.google.co.uk/books?id=MWSiYp0-AGEC&pg=PA577&...
1861 Census
The 8 year old Jonathan W, born Ripley, Derbyshire, was recorded living at the Baptist Chapel, Loscoe, Nottinghamshire. This was the household of his parents, George, (aged 42 and a Farmer from Ripley), and Mary A(?), aged 35 and from Heanor, Derbyshire. The couple also have a 4 year old son, James J A, born Ripley. Living with them are 1 house servant and 2 farm employees.
1871 Census
The family are probably still at the same address, but its now described as Egreves House, Denby Road, Loscoe. Father George, (52) is still recorded as married but his wife was absent on the night of the census. George gives his occupation as a Farmer of 70 acres and a Landowner, an Employer of 3 men and 1 boy.
Living with him is his widower father, Jonathan, (aged 84 and a Landowner from Loscoe, Derbyshire), as well as his children, Laura, (aged 22 and born Ripley), and Jonathan W, (aged 18 and a Student from Ripley). There is also one domestic servant and one farm employee living with them.
4th October 1873 – 1880 Cambridge University
Alumni Cantabrigienses, Volume 2.
Admitted as a Pensioner at CORPUS CHRISTI, October 4th 1873. Matriculated Michaelmas 1873. B.A. 1877. M.A 1880,
books.google.co.uk/books?id=MWSiYp0-AGEC&pg=PA577&...
1878 – Clerical Career begins
Ordained deacon, (Norwich) – 1878
Priest – 1880
Curate of East Bergholt – 1878 – 1882
books.google.co.uk/books?id=MWSiYp0-AGEC&pg=PA577&...
1881 Census
The unmarried 28 year old Jonathan W, born Ripley, Derbyshire, was recorded as the head of the household of a dwelling at East Bergholt, Suffolk. His occupation is given as Curate of East Bergholt and M.A. of Cambridge University.
1882-85
Curate of Denton, Norfolk
books.google.co.uk/books?id=MWSiYp0-AGEC&pg=PA577&...
17th February 1885
The marriage took place on this day at All Saints, South Elmham, of Jonathan William Wooley, of full age and Single to Alice Mabel Durrant, of full age and Single. Jonathan was a Clerk in Holy Orders from the parish of Denton, Norfolk. His father was George, with Occupation given as “Gentleman”. Her father was George Frederick, also described as “Gentleman”. Witnesses were J Woolley and G F Norman Durrant. Additional witnesses who signed the Parish Register were Arthur Durrant and George Frederick Durrant.
freereg2.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5510cf9ce93790332e...
(A marriage was recorded in the Wangford District of Suffolk in the January to March quarter of 1885 between Jonathan William Woolley and Alice Mabel Durrant).
1886 – 1907
Vicar of St Peter’s with St John, Hoveton.
books.google.co.uk/books?id=MWSiYp0-AGEC&pg=PA577&...
15th November 1887
The baptism of a Reginald George Woolley, born 15th November 1887, took place at Hoveton St Peter on the 28th December 1887. His parents were Jonathan William and Alice Mabel Woolley. His father was a Clerk in Holy Orders. The family live at Hoveton Vicarage.
freereg2.freereg.org.uk/search_records/569af562f493fd6be7...
26th March 1891
The baptism of a William Norman Woolley, born 26th March 1891, took place at Hoveton St John on the 17th April 1891. His parents were Jonathan William and Alice Mabel Woolley. His father was a Clerk in Holy Orders. The family live at Hoveton St.John.
freereg2.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5510fb7ee937907e5f...
The burial of a William Norman Woolley, aged 4 weeks, was recorded at Hoveton St John in 1891.
While this could be a co-incidence, his absence from later census, must make it likely that this is the son of Jonathan and Alice, despite Alice stating on the 1911 census that she has had 2 children and both were still alive, (see below).
freereg2.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5510b94fe937907e5f...
The civil records have only one William Norman Woolley born in Norfolk in the period 1891 +/-2 years. This birth was registered in the Smallburgh District, which then included Hoveton St John, in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1891.
Similarly the civil records have only one death of a William Norman Woolley of any age in the Norfolk area in the period 1891 +/- 2 years. The death recorded was of a baby aged under 1, and the death was recorded in the Smallburgh District in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1891.
1891 Census
The 38 year old Jonathan William Woolley, born Ripley, Derbyshire and Vicar of Hoveton, was recorded as the Head of a Household at Upper Street, Hoveton St John. Living with him are his wife Alice Mabel, aged 29 and from All Saints South Elmham, Suffolk, and their two children, Reginald George, (aged 3) and William, (aged 1 month). Both children were born Hoveton.
Also living with him are his married brother –in-law and his single sister-in-law. He is Arthur Durrant, ( aged 32 and from All Saints South Elmham, Suffolk) who was the Curate of Saffron Walden. She is Ellen Durrant, (aged 30 and from All Saints South Elmham, Suffolk).
The family also have 4 live in servants, one of whom was a sick nurse.
1901 Census
The family are still recorded at Upper Street, Hoveton St John and are probably in the same house, but now it is identified as The Vicarage. As well as Jonathan W, (48) and Alice M, (39), there are two live in servants.
Their 13 year old son, Reginald G was recorded as a Schoolboy boarding at “St Aubyns”, London Road, Kirkley, Suffolk.
There does not appear to be a record of William on this census for England and Wales, nor of the one for Scotland.
8th January 1907
The 1907 Probate Calendar records:-
WOOLLEY, the reverend Jonathan William, of Hoveton St John, Norfolk, clerk, died 8th January 1907. Probate was granted in the London Court on the 30th April 1907 to Alice Mabel Woolley, widow, and James John Arthur Woolley, esquire. His estate was valued at £10,899 18s 2d.
probatesearch.service.gov.uk/Calendar?surname=Woolley&...
Postscript
1911 Census
The 23 year old Reginald “Geo.”, single and a Land Agent from Hoveton St John, was recorded as the head of the household at The Hill, Sheringham, Norfolk. Living with him is his widowed mother Alice Mabel, aged 49. Originally from All Saints South Elmham, Suffolk, she states she has had two children, both then still alive. There is also one live in servant.
There does not appear to be a record of William on this census for England and Wales.
The family pops up on several family history sites.
The Tatham Family site has most of the family members. The Tollis family has them all but concentrates on birth and death. The Simpson family site just goes for a large family tree, but I did note in passing that a Joseph Woolley, born c1816, was the Rector of East Bergholt at much the same time as Jonathan William was curate there.
Jonathan William Woolley
www.saxonlodge.net/getperson.php?personID=I4192&tree=...
www.tolliss.com/webtrees/individual.php?pid=I5904&ged...
freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~simpsont/WOOLL...
Alice Mabel Woolley, nee Durrant
Died 26th August 1942, Lyndhurst (Hampshire). Widow of the Rev.J W Woolley, formerly Vicar of Hoveton.(Notice in the Times).
www.saxonlodge.net/getperson.php?personID=I4193&tree=...
www.tolliss.com/webtrees/individual.php?pid=I5903&ged...
1942 Probate Calendar records Alice Mabel Woolley of The Haven, Lyndhurst, Hampshire, widow, who died 26th August 1942 at Peacehaven, Lyndhurst. Administration was granted at the Winchester Court on the 11th December 1942 to Reginald George Woolley, Chartered Surveyor.
probatesearch.service.gov.uk/Calendar#calendar
Reginald George Woolley
Married c.November 1929 to Mary Octavia Cautley. When they engaged in September 1929 he is recorded as Captain Reginald George Woolley. His mother was then living at 1 Cousins Grove, Southsea. When Mary died in 1947 her address was given as The Haven, Lyndhurst. When Reginald died in 1949, his address was given as New Forest, (which would include Lyndhurst)
www.saxonlodge.net/getperson.php?personID=I4191&tree=...
The Kelly’s Directory of Derbyshire of 1941 records that Captain Reginald George Woolley is one of the three principal land-owners in the ecclesiastical parish of Codnor. It also records that the Woolley’s had made a gift of a memorial window in the local church following the death of another family member, so this may have been part of a tradition. It also references Ripley a number of times, even referring to former parts of the parish now being associated with it for civil purposes.
www.codnor.info/kellys1941.php
There is a Reginald George Woolley , service number 755067, Listed in the Supplement to the London Gazette of the 2nd February 1943, Page 599. This was to appoint him Pilot Officer on probation with the General Duties Branch of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve effective 3rd December 1942.
www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/35885/supplement/599/da...
www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/35885/supplement/598/da...
Reginald died on the 12th October 1949 at The Haven, Lyndhurst, Hampshire.
www.tolliss.com/webtrees/individual.php?pid=I5905&ged...
He appears in the Probate Calendar for 1950. Reginald George Woolley of The Haven, Lyndhurst, Hampshire died 12th October 1949. Probate was granted at the Winchester Court on the 2nd February 1950 to Ronald Scott Lawrence Bowker, solicitor, and Richard Henn Collins, Chartered Surveyor and Land Agent. The estate was subsequently revalued to £94,229 16 s 4d.
probatesearch.service.gov.uk/Calendar?surname=Woolley&...
William Woolley
www.tolliss.com/webtrees/individual.php?pid=I5906&ged...
If his mother is to be believed, William was still alive at the time of the 1911 census, but doesn’t appear to be in England, Wales or Scotland, (1901 censuses) or England and Wales, (1911). Either that or she had another child, details of which have not yet been identified, and therefore she did not include William in the total count of children.
Dedicated to MariAnna ( ' Starlightworld ' on Flickr )
In gratitude for the nice testimonial ....
& in appreciation of your kindness ... the sparkle of your personality ...& the gift of your friendship :-)
Thank you, my friend...Grazie mille !
Paul Gauguin - Self Portrait Dedicated to Carriere, 1889 at National Art Gallery Washington DC
Also viewed at the Legion of Honor Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco CA for Intimate Impressionism from the National Gallery of Art
The temple was begun by Augustus in 42 BC after the senate deified Julius Caesar posthumously. Augustus dedicated the prostyle temple (it is still unknown whether its order was Ionic, Corinthian or composite) to Caesar, his adoptive father, on 18 August 29 BC, after the Battle of Actium. It stands on the east side of the main square of the Roman Forum, between the Regia, Temple of Castor and Pollux, and the Basilica Aemilia, on the site of Caesar's cremation and where Caesar's testament was read aloud at the funeral by Mark Antony.
Caesar was the first resident of Rome to be deified and so honored with a temple. A fourth flamen maior was dedicated to him after 44 BC, and Mark Antony was the first to serve as Flamen Divi Julii, priest of the cult of Caesar.
Commemorative plaque beside Caesar's altar.
The high platform on which the temple was built served as a rostra (Rostra ad divi Iuli) and, like the rostra at the opposite end of the Forum, was decorated with the beaks of ships taken at the battle of Actium.
The Temple of Caesar was the only temple to be entirely dedicated to the cult of a comet (referred to as a 'comet star') The comet, appearing some time after Caesar's murder (44 BC), was considered to be the soul of the deified Julius Caesar and the symbol of the "new birth" of Augustus as a unique Roman ruler and Emperor. In Greek and Roman culture, comet is an adjective describing the distinctive characteristic of a special star. "Comet star" means "long-haired star", and it was so represented on coins and monuments. Here is an excerpt of an account by Pliny, with parts of a public speech delivered by Augustus about the comet, his father Caesar, and his own destiny:
The only place in the whole world where a comet is the object of worship is a temple at Rome. [...] His late Majesty Augustus had deemed this comet very propitious to himself; as it had appeared not [...] long after the decease of his father Caesar. [...] People believed that this star signified the soul of Caesar received among the spirits of the immortal gods.
The "Divine Star" was represented on coins, and probably worshiped in the temple itself either as a "comet star" or as a "simple star". The simple star had been used as a general symbol of divinity since 44 BC, as can be seen on the 44 BC coin series; after the appearance of the comet, the simple star was transformed into a comet by adding a tail to one of the rays of the simple star, as is shown on the 37–34 BC, 19–18 BC and 17 BC coin series.
According to Appian the place near the Regia and probably part of the main square of the Roman Forum was a second choice, because the first intention of the Roman people was to bury Caesar on the Capitoline Hill among the other Gods of Rome. However, the Roman priests prevented them from doing so (allegedly because the cremation was considered unsafe due to the many wooden structures there) and the corpse of Caesar was carried back to the Forum near the Regia, which had been the personal headquarters of Caesar as Pontifex Maximus. After a violent quarrel about the funeral pyre and the final destiny of Caesar's ashes, the Roman people, the men of Caesar's party, and the men of Caesar's family decided to build the pyre at that location. It seems that in that very place there was a tribunal praetoris sub divo with gradus known as the tribunal Aurelium, a structure built by C. Aurelius Cotta around 80 BC near the so-called Puteal Libonis, a bidental used for sacred oaths before trials. After the funeral of Caesar and the building of the temple, this tribunal was then moved in front of the Temple of Caesar, probably to the location of the so-called Rostra Diocletiani.
Caesar's corpse was carried to the Roman Forum on an ivory couch and set up on the Rostra in a gilded shrine modelled on the Temple of Venus Genetrix, the goddess from whom the family of the Iulii claimed to have originated. Mark Antony delivered his famous speech followed by a public reading of Caesar's will, while a mechanical device, positioned above the bier itself, rotated a wax image of Caesar so that people were able to clearly see the 23 wounds in all parts of the body and on the face. The crowd, moved by the words of Mark Antony, Caesar's will, and the sight of the wax image, attempted but failed to carry the corpse to the Capitol to rest among the gods. In the end the corpse was placed on a funeral pile created near the Regia by making use of any wooden objects available in the Forum, such as wooden benches, and a great cremation fire lasted all the night long. It seems that an ordinary funeral had been prepared for Caesar at the Campus Martius.
An altar and a column were briefly erected at the cremation site for the cult of the murdered pontifex maximus, a sacred man, against whom it was strictly prohibited to use cutting weapons and objects. The column was of Numidian yellow stone and had the inscription Parenti Patriae, i.e., to the founder of the nation. But this first monument was almost immediately taken down and removed by the anti-Caesarian party. In 42 BC Octavian, Lepidus and Mark Antony decreed the building of a temple to Caesar.
Some time after the death of Caesar a comet appeared in the sky of Rome and remained clearly visible every day for seven days, starting one hour before sunset. This comet appeared for the first time during the ritual games in front of the Temple of Venus Genetrix, the supposed ancestor of the Julii family in the Forum of Julius Caesar, and many in Rome thought it was the soul of deified Caesar called to join the other gods. After the appearance of this sign, Augustus delivered a public speech giving an explanation of the appearance of the comet. The speech is partially known since a partial transcription by Pliny the Elder has been handed down. After the public speech Augustus caused a few series of coins devoted to the comet star and to the deified Caesar, "Divus Iulius", to be struck and widely distributed, so it is possible to have an idea of the representation of the comet star of the deified Julius Caesar.
During his public speech about the appearance of the comet, Augustus specified that he himself, the new ruler of the world, was born politically at the very time his father Julius Caesar appeared as a comet in the sky of Rome. His father was announcing the political birth of his adoptive son; he was the one born under the comet and whom the appearance of the comet was announcing. Other messianic prophecies about Augustus are related by Suetonius, including the story of the massacre of the innocents conceived in order to kill the young Octavius soon after his own birth. Augustus wanted to be considered the real subject of any kind of Messianic prophecies and accounts. Later during his reign, he ordered that all other books of prophecies and Messianic accounts be gathered and destroyed. The temple therefore ended up as representing both Julius Caesar as a deified being and Augustus himself as the newborn under the comet. The comet star itself was an object of public worship.
The consecration of the temple lasted many days, during which there were reconstructions of the siege of Troy, gladiatorial games, hunting scenes, and banquets. On this occasion a hippopotamus and a rhinoceros were displayed in Rome for the first time. It seems that the doors of the Temple were left opened so that it was possible to see the statue of the deified pontifex maximus Julius Caesar from the main square of the Roman Forum. If this is true, the new interpretation about the location of the Rostra Diocletiani and Rostra ad Divi Iuli cannot be correct.
Augustus used to dedicate the spoils of war in this temple. The altar and the shrine conferred the right of asylum. Every four years a festival was held in front of the Rostra ad Divi Iuli in honour of Augustus. The Rostra were used to deliver funeral speeches by succeeding emperors. Drusus and Tiberius delivered a double speech in the Forum; Drusus read his speech from the Rostra Augusti and Tiberius read his from the Rostra ad Divi Iuli, one in front of the other. The emperor Hadrian delivered what was perhaps a funeral speech from the Rostra ad Divi Iuli in 125 AD, as can be seen on the coin series struck for the occasion.
Dedicated in February 2001 and named for St Dominic de Guzman, this is the chapel of Providence College, RI. It is octagonal, a shape inspired by Byzantine, early Renaissance, Shaker, and contemporary traditions, and the architect was Dennis Keefe.
LEGOLAND Windsor a theme park dedicated to children aged 3-12 years old and of course big kid adults.
An inspirational land where the kids are the hero and adults relive their childhood.
The fun never stops and imagination knows no bounds, a family attraction like no other.
Set in 150 acres of beautiful parkland, LEGOLAND Windsor is a unique family theme park with over 55 interactive rides, live shows, building workshops, driving schools and attractions.
It's amazing what can be built with LEGO bricks - nearly 55 million of them!
From comical camels to fearsome fire-breathing dragons, world landmarks to musical pirates, young and old alike will be fascinated by the incredible LEGO models throughout the park.
Fun Facts about LEGOLAND Windsor
There are 34 LEGO pieces in an average Miniland figure.
The largest model in Miniland is the Canary Wharf Tower which is 5.2 metres tall and took 3 model makers 850 hours to complete using 200,000 LEGO Bricks!
The smallest models are the pigeons in Trafalgar Square which contain 5 LEGO bricks each
New in 2011 - Atlantis Submarine Voyage
Take a deep breath and submerge yourself in an underwater adventure.
Plunge into the depths with this world-first LEGO® submarine ride and immerse yourself in a magical underwater adventure.
So what’s New in 2012
STAR WARS MINILAND EXPERIENCE - The Force has arrived at LEGOLAND
Take a trip to a galaxy far, far away at the UK’s only indoor LEGO® Star Wars™ Miniland Experience at the LEGOLAND®Windsor Resort. Enjoy seven of the most famous scenes from the six live-action Star Wars movies, as well as a scene from the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars™ all made out of 1.5 million LEGO® bricks built in 1:20 scale. Follow the chronological path through the Star Wars timeline and retrace the major events of the beloved Saga featuring 2,000 LEGO® models, authentic sounds and lighting effects in the ultimate LEGO®Star Wars experience.
LEGOLAND WINDSOR RESORT HOTEL - Now open
An exciting LEGO adventure awaits you, as the amazing 150 room, fully themed LEGOLAND Hotel opens at LEGOLAND Windsor RESORT!
Staying overnight at the new LEGOLAND Windsor Resort Hotel is a must for all LEGO fans. From the spectacular dragon-guarded entrance and interactive LEGO features through to the brightly coloured pirate splash pool and fully themed bedrooms, the new hotel will inspire imaginations and create laugh-out loud memories. With dedicated indoor play areas, entertainment and a buffet-style restaurant serving child-friendly meals, it’s the perfect family treat.
Dedicated to all of those who take pictures of brick walls to see if your lens has barrel distorsion or moustache distorsion.
I'd suggest to deep your moustache in a barrel of beer and enjoy whatever distorted reality you get from there!!
:D
Woodside Plaza is dedicated to the members of the Woodside community who served and died in World War I (1914-1918), World War II (1939-1945), Korea (1950-1953), and Vietnam (1964-1975). It is named for the neighborhood of Woodside, which lies in northwestern Queens, abutting Long Island City.
During New Yorks colonial period, Woodside was known as suicides paradise, as it was largely snake-infested swamps and wolf-ridden woodlands. The Dutch gave Father John Doughty, a colonist from Massachusetts, a charter for 13,000 acres in 1642, and thus began the regions settlement. During the mid-1800s, several wealthy men moved from Charleston, South Carolina to build mansions in the region, including John Kelly. Kellys son John Andrew Kelly worked as a newspaper man and wrote a set of articles entitled Letters from Woodside, after his view of the woods from his window. When developer Benjamin Hitchcock bought the Kelly estate in 1867 to develop a village, he favored the name Woodside over suicides paradise for his new town.
Woodside saw a huge building boom in 1869, when Hitchcock broke the Kelly farm into lots, which he sold for between $100 and $300 each. He also built streets in the village, and his interest encouraged other builders to join in developing the area. Eventually, other large estates were sold and developed. The Long Island and the Flushing Rail Road companies merged and opened a station in Woodside in 1895. When the Queensboro Bridge opened in 1909, the population of Woodside rose to nearly six thousand people. Elevated train lines branched into the neighborhood and opened in 1917, causing the population to jump again. In the 1920s, the last tracts of undeveloped land disappeared. After World War II, many of the houses in Woodside were torn down to make way for apartment buildings.
Woodside Plaza, located at the junction of Roosevelt Avenue, Woodside Avenue, and 60th Street, was originally known as Woodside Memorial Park after its construction in 1971. Commissioner Stern renamed the property Woodside Plaza in 1998. There is a large monument in the park, made of smooth gray marble, with the following inscription in gold lettering: WOODSIDE MEMORIAL PARK: Dedicated to all members of the community who made the supreme sacrifice for the good and welfare of their country and for the peace and freedom of mankind. THE WORLD WARS, KOREA, AND VIETNAM.
Also in the park are several young trees and new plantings including Willowleaf cotoneaster (Cotoneaster salicifolius), Siberian cypress (Microbiota decussata), lillyturf (Liriope muscari Big Blue), cranesbill (Geranium masculatum), Bloody geranium (Geranium sanguineum), Evergreen barrenwort (Epidium davidii), Threadleaf bluestar (Amsonia hubrechtii), Meadow sage (Salvia pratensis), and comfrey (Symphytum officinale).
The property is paved with square and hexagonal tiles. There are several sets of wooden benches, as well as two lampposts, a flagpole with a yardarm, and a drinking fountain, all of which were added during reconstruction in 1999. Woodside Plaza is now part of the Greenstreets program, a joint project of Parks and the Department of Transportation begun in 1986 and revived in 1994. Its goal is to convert paved street properties, such as triangles and malls, into green spaces.
LEGOLAND Windsor a theme park dedicated to children aged 3-12 years old and of course big kid adults.
An inspirational land where the kids are the hero and adults relive their childhood.
The fun never stops and imagination knows no bounds, a family attraction like no other.
Set in 150 acres of beautiful parkland, LEGOLAND Windsor is a unique family theme park with over 55 interactive rides, live shows, building workshops, driving schools and attractions.
It's amazing what can be built with LEGO bricks - nearly 55 million of them!
From comical camels to fearsome fire-breathing dragons, world landmarks to musical pirates, young and old alike will be fascinated by the incredible LEGO models throughout the park.
Fun Facts about LEGOLAND Windsor
There are 34 LEGO pieces in an average Miniland figure.
The largest model in Miniland is the Canary Wharf Tower which is 5.2 metres tall and took 3 model makers 850 hours to complete using 200,000 LEGO Bricks!
The smallest models are the pigeons in Trafalgar Square which contain 5 LEGO bricks each
New in 2011 - Atlantis Submarine Voyage
Take a deep breath and submerge yourself in an underwater adventure.
Plunge into the depths with this world-first LEGO® submarine ride and immerse yourself in a magical underwater adventure.
So what’s New in 2012
STAR WARS MINILAND EXPERIENCE - The Force has arrived at LEGOLAND
Take a trip to a galaxy far, far away at the UK’s only indoor LEGO® Star Wars™ Miniland Experience at the LEGOLAND® Windsor Resort. Enjoy seven of the most famous scenes from the six live-action Star Wars movies, as well as a scene from the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars™ all made out of 1.5 million LEGO® bricks built in 1:20 scale. Follow the chronological path through the Star Wars timeline and retrace the major events of the beloved Saga featuring 2,000 LEGO® models, authentic sounds and lighting effects in the ultimate LEGO® Star Wars experience.
LEGOLAND WINDSOR RESORT HOTEL - Now open
An exciting LEGO adventure awaits you, as the amazing 150 room, fully themed LEGOLAND Hotel opens at LEGOLAND Windsor RESORT!
Staying overnight at the new LEGOLAND Windsor Resort Hotel is a must for all LEGO fans. From the spectacular dragon-guarded entrance and interactive LEGO features through to the brightly coloured pirate splash pool and fully themed bedrooms, the new hotel will inspire imaginations and create laugh-out loud memories. With dedicated indoor play areas, entertainment and a buffet-style restaurant serving child-friendly meals, it’s the perfect family treat.
Dedicated to my fellow friend pixelspin. Had a lot of fun tonight with our ducks :D
Dedicated Nurses, teachers, administrators, and supervisors of nursing floors, lab, x-ray, and nutrition services.
Meenakshi Amman Temple (also called: Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, Tiru-aalavaai and Meenakshi Amman Kovil) is a historic Hindu temple located on the southern bank of the Vaigai River in the temple city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is dedicated to Parvati, known as Meenakshi, and her consort, Shiva, here named Sundareswarar. The temple forms the heart and lifeline of the 2,500 year old city of Madurai and is a significant symbol for the Tamil people, mentioned since antiquity in Tamil literature though the present structure was built between 1623 and 1655 CE. It houses 14 gopurams (gateway towers), ranging from 45–50m in height. The tallest is the southern tower, 51.9 metres high, and two golden sculptured vimanas, the shrines over the garbhagrihas (sanctums) of the main deities. The temple attracts 15,000 visitors a day, around 25,000 on Fridays, and receives an annual revenue of sixty million INR. There are an estimated 33,000 sculptures in the temple. It was on the list of top 30 nominees for the "New Seven Wonders of the World". The annual 10-day Meenakshi Tirukalyanam festival, celebrated during April and May, attracts 1 million visitors.
LEGEND
Meenakshi (IAST Mīnākṣī Tamil மீனாட்சி) is an avatar of the Hindu goddess Parvati - the consort of Shiva, one of the few Hindu female deities to have a major temple devoted to her. The name "Mīnachchi" means fish-eyed and is derived from the words "mīna" meaning fish and "akṣi" meaning eyes. The lady goddess Meenakshi is the principal deity of the temple, not Sundareswarar, unlike most Shiva temples in South India where Shiva is the principal deity. According to Hindu legend, in order to answer the prayers of the second Pandya king Malayadwaja Pandya and his wife Kanchanamalai, Parvati appeared out of the holy fire of the Putra Kameshti Yagna (sacrifice for childhood) performed by the king. According to another legend, the goddess herself gave notice to Kanchanamalai in one of her previous births that Kanchanamalai would have the privilege of mothering the goddess. The girl who came out of the holy fire had three breasts. A voice from the heavens told the king not to worry about the abnormality and added that the third breast would vanish as soon as the girl met her future husband. The happy king named the girl "Tadaatagai" and as the heir to the throne, Tadaatagai was trained carefully in all the 64 sastras, the fields of science.
As the time came for Tadaatagai's coronation, she had to wage war in three worlds encompassing eight directions. After conquering Brahma's Abode, Sathyaloka, Vishnu's Abode, Vaikunta, and Devas' abode Amaravati, she advanced to Shiva's Abode Kailasha. She very easily defeated the bhoota ganas (IAST: Bhūtagana, meaning Shiva's army) and Nandi, the celestial bull of Shiva, and headed to attack and conquer Shiva. The moment she looked at Shiva, she was unable to fight and bowed her head down due to shyness, and the third breast vanished immediately. Tadaatagai realized that Shiva was her destined husband. She also realized that she was the incarnation of Parvati. Both Shiva and Tadaatagai returned to Madurai and the king arranged the coronation ceremony of his daughter, followed by her marriage with Shiva.
The marriage was to be the biggest event on earth, with the whole earth gathering near Madurai. Vishnu, the brother of Meenakshi, prepared to travel from his holy abode at Vaikuntam to preside over the marriage. Due to a divine play, he was tricked by the Deva, Indra and was delayed on the way. After the marriage, the pair ruled over Madurai for a long time and then assumed divine forms as Sundareswarar and Meenakshi, the presiding deities of the temple. Following the tradition, every evening, before closing the temple, a ritual procession lead by drummers and a brass ensemble carries the image of Sundareswarar to Meenakshi's bedroom to consummate the union, to be taken back the next morning in dawn. The marriage is celebrated annually as Chithirai Thiruvizha in Madurai. During the period of Nayakar rule in Madurai, the ruler Thirumalai Nayakar linked the festival Azhakar Thiruvizha and the Meenakshi wedding ceremony.
HISTORY
The Meenatchi temple is believed to have been founded by Indra (king of Deva celestial deities) while he was on a pilgrimage to atone for his misdeeds. He felt his burden lifting as he neared the swayambu lingam (self formed lingam, a representation of Shiva used for worship in temples) of Madurai. He ascribed this miracle to the lingam and constructed the temple to enshrine it. Indra worshipped Shiva, who caused golden lotuses to appear in the nearby pool. Tamil literature speaks of the temple over the last two millennia. Thirugnanasambandar, the famous Hindu saint of Saiva philosophy, mentioned this temple as early as the 7th century, and described the deity as Aalavai Iraivan. The temple is believed to have been sacked by the infamous Muslim invader Malik Kafur in 1310 and all the ancient elements were destroyed. The initiative to rebuild the structure was taken by first Nayak king of Madurai, Viswanatha Nayak (1559–1600) under the supervision of Ariyanatha Mudaliar, the prime minister of the Nayak Dynasty and the founder of the Poligar System. The original design by Vishwanatha Nayak in 1560 was substantially expanded to the current structure during the reign of Thirumalai Nayak (1623–55). He took considerable interest in erecting many complexes inside the temple. His major contributions are the Vasantha Mandapam for celebrating vasanthorsavam (spring festival) and Kilikoondu Mandapam (corridor of parrots). The corridors of the temple tank and Meenatchi Nayakar Mandapam were built by Rani Mangammal.
Rous Peter (1786–1828), the Collector of Madurai in 1812, got nickname 'Peter Pandian’ as he respected and treated people of all faiths equally. He donated a set of golden stirrups studded with diamonds and red stones to the temple.Goddess Meenatchi is believed to have saved Rous Peter from a fatal incident. He also wished that after his death, his body be buried in a position that would enable his eyes to face the temple.
THE TEMPLE
ARCHITECTURE
The temple is the geographic and ritual center of the ancient city of Madurai and one of the largest temple complexes in Tamil Nadu. The temple complex is divided into a number of concentric quadrangular enclosures contained by high masonry walls. It is one of the few temples in Tamil Nadu to have four entrances facing four directions. Vishwantha Nayaka allegedly redesigned the city of Madurai in accordance with the principles laid down by Shilpa Shastras (Sanskrit: śilpa śāstra, also anglicized as silpa sastra meaning rules of architecture) relevant to urban planning. The city was laid out in the shape of square with a series of concentric streets culminating from the temple. These squares continue to retain their traditional names, Aadi, Chittirai, Avani-moola and Masi streets, corresponding to Tamil month names. Ancient Tamil classics mention that the temple was the center of the city and the streets happened to be radiating out like lotus and its petals. The temple prakarams (outer precincts of a temple) and streets accommodate an elobrate festival calendar in which dramatic processions circumabulate the shrines at varying distances from the centre. The vehicles used in processions are progressively more massive the further they travel from the centre. The complex is in around 180,000 m2.
GOPURAMS
The temple is surrounded by gopurams (gateway tower), - There are ten gopuram the tallest of which, the famous southern tower, rises to over 52 m and was built in 1559. The oldest gopuram is the eastern one, built by Maravarman Sundara Pandyan during 1216-1238 Each gopuram is a multi-storeyed structure, covered with thousands of stone figures of animals, gods and demons painted in bright hues. The outer gopuram presents steeply pyramidal tower encrusted with plaster figures, while the inner gopuram serves as the entrance to the inner enclosure of Sundareswarar shrine.
SHRINES
The central shrine of Meenakshi Amman temple and her consort Sundareswarar are surrounded by three enclosures and each of these are protected by four minor towers at the four points of the compass, the outer tower growing larger and reaching higher to the corresponding inner one. The Meenakshi shrine has the emerald-hued black stone image of Meenakshi. The Sundareswarar shrine lies at the centre of the complex, suggesting that the ritual dominance of the goddess developed later. Both the Meenakshi and Sundareswarar shrines have gold plated Vimanam (tower over sanctum). The golden top can be seen from a great distance in the west through the apertures of two successive towers. The area covered by the shrine of Sundareswarar is exactly one fourth of the area of the temple and that of Meenakshi is one fourth that of Sundareswarar.
The tall sculpture of Ganesh carved of single stone located outside the Sundareswarar shrine in the path from Meenashi shrine is called the Mukuruny Vinayakar. A large measure of rice measuring 3 kurini (a measure) is shaped into a big ball of sacrifice and hence the Ganesh is called Mukkurni Vinayagar (three kurinis). This deity is believed to be found during a 17th-century excavation process to dig the Mariamman temple tank.
TEMPLE TANK & SURROUNDING PORTICO
The sacred temple tank Porthamarai Kulam ("Pond with the golden lotus"), is 50 m by 37 m in size. According to legend, Shiva promised a stork that no fish or other marine life would grow here and thus no marine animals are found in the lake. In the Tamil legends, the lake is supposed to judge the worth of a new piece of literature. Authors place their works here and the poorly written works are supposed to sink and the scholastic ones are supposed to float, Tirukkural by Tiruvalluvar was one such work.
Only a fraction of 17th and 18th century paintings of Nayak period survives and one such portion is found in the small portico on the western side of the tank. It depicts the marriage of Sundareswarar and Meenkashi attended by Vijayaranga Chokkanatha and Rani Mangammal. The painting is executed on a vivid red background, with delicate black linework and large areas of white, green and ochre. The celestial couple is seated inside an architectural frame with a flowering tree in the background.
HALLS
The corridor surrounding the sanctum the Meenakshi is called kilikoondu Mandapam ("bird cage corridor"). The space was once used to keep green parrots that were trained to utter the name of Meenakshi. There are two large cages full of squawking green parrots.
The Kambatadi Mandapam ("Hall of temple tree") with its seated Nandi (sacred bull) has various manifestations of Shiva carved and also contains the famous "Marriage of Meenakshi" sculpture. Sculptures of Shiva and Kali trying to out-dance one another are pelted with balls of ghee by devotees. A golden flagstaff with 32 sections symbolizes the human backbone and is surrounded by various gods, including Durga and Siddar.
The Puthu Mandapam ("new hall") constructed by Tirumala Nayak contains large number of sculptures. It is situated opposite to the east gopuram.
The Ashta Shakthi Mandapam ("Hall of eight goddess") is the first hall in the entrance of Meenakshi shrine tower near to East Tower. Ashta indicates eight and Shakthi refers to goddess - the hall has statues of eight goddesses. The gopurams (towers) can be viewed from this hall. The passage was named for eight forms of goddess Sakthi carved on its pillars. Other sculptures and paintings depict the Tiruvilayadal (holy games of Shiva). The sculptures of heroes of Mahabharata, the Pancha pandavas can be seen in the Pancha Pandava Mandapam (Hall of Pandavas).
The Viravasantharaya Mandapam is a large hall with huge corridors. To the south of this hall is the kalyana mandapam, to the south of the pillared hall, is where the marriage of Shiva and Parvati is celebrated every year during the Chithirai Festival in mid-April. The golden images of Meenakshi and Sundareswarar are carried into the 16th century oonjal mandapam (swing corridor) and placed on the swing every Friday at 5:30 p.m. The shrine has a 3-storied gopuram guarded by two stern dwarapalakas (guardians) and supported by golden, rectangular columns that bear lotus markings. Along the perimeter of the chamber, granite panels of the divine couple are present. The hall is situated in the western bank of the temple tank.
The Mudali Pillai Mandapam or Iruttu Mandapam (Dark hall) is a wide and long hall built by Muthu Pillai during 1613. On the pillars of the halls, there are fine sculptures depicting the story of Shiva taking the form of Bikshadanar to teach the sages a lesson.
The Mangayarkarasi mandapam is a newly built hall situated opposite to the marriage halls and bears the name of saindy queen, Mangayarkarasi who contributed to Saivism and Tamil language. To the south of Mangayarkarasi mandapam lies the Servaikarar Mandapam, a hall built by Marudu brothers in 1795. The Nagara mandapam (Hall of beating drums) lies opposite to Sundareswarar shrine was built by Achaya Rayar, the minister of Rani Mangammal in 1635. The Kolu Mandapam is a hall for displaying dolls during the Navarathri festival celebrated during September–October. This hall is situated in the second corridor of the Meenakshi shrine at the western side.
HALL OF THOUSAND PILLARS
The Meenakshi Nayakkar Mandapam ("Hall of 1000 pillars") has two rows of pillars carved with images of yali (mythological beast with body of lion and head of an elephant), commonly used as the symbol of Nayak power. It is situated to the north of Sundareswarar flag staff hall. The Thousand Pillar Hall contains 985 (instead of 1000) carved pillars. The hall was built by Ariyanatha Mudaliar in 1569 and blends engineering skill and artistic vision. Ariyanatha Mudaliar was prime minister and general of Viswanatha Nayak, the first Nayaka of Madurai (1559–1600). He was also the founder of Poligar System, the quasi-feudal organization of the country dividing it into multiple palayams or small provinces in which each palayam was ruled by a palayakkarar or a petty chief. At the entrance of the hall is the statue of Ariyanatha Mudaliar seated on a horse-back, flanking one side of the entrance to the temple. The statue is periodically garlanded by worshippers. Each pillar in the hall is a carved monument of the Dravidian sculpture. The more prominent among the carved figures are those of Rati (wife of Kama), Karthikeya, Ganesha, Shiva as a wandering mendicant and endless number of yalis (mythical figures of lions). There is a Temple Art Museum in the hall where icons, photographs, drawings, and other exhibits of the 1200 years old history of the temple are displayed. Just outside this hall, towards the west, are the Musical Pillars. Each pillar, when struck, produces a different musical note.
RELIGIOUS SIGNIFANCE OF THE TEMPLE
A distinct feature of Meenakshi in terms of iconography is the presence of parrot in her right hand. The parrot is generally associated with the Vaishnava azhwar saint Andal. "Pancha Sabhai" refers to the five royal courts of Nataraja (dancing form of Shiva) where he performed cosmic dance. The Tamil word velli means silver and ambalam means stage or altar. This massive Nataraja sculpture is enclosed in a huge silver altar and hence called "Velli Ambalam" (silver abode). This is a special figure of Natarja which usually differs from Chola bronzes; in the Chola images, Nataraja is shown dancing with his left leg raised, but this sculpture has the right leg raised. According to the Tiruvilayaadal Puranam (Shiva's sacred games), this is on the request of Rajasekara Pandya, who was a sincere devotee of Shiva. He requested the deity to change his position, as he felt that keeping the same foot raised would put enormous strain and got a graceful acquiescence from the divine master.
RITUALS
WORSHIP
There are close to 50 priests in the temple who perform the puja (rituals) during festivals and on a daily basis. Like other Shiva temples of Tamil Nadu, the priests belong to Shivaite to the Adishaivas, a Brahmin sub-caste. The priests live in a closed area north of the temple. The temple has a six time pooja calendar everyday, each comprising four rituals namely abhisheka (sacred bath), alangaram (decoration), neivethanam (food offerings) and deepa aradanai (waving of lamps) for both Meenakshi and Sundareswarar. The puja (worship) ceremonies are held amidst music with nadhaswaram (pipe instrument) and tavil (percussion instrument), religious instructions in the Vedas by priests and prostration by worshippers in front of the temple mast. The common practise is to worship Meenakshi before Sundareswarar. Margazhi (December–January) ritual is prominent one for winning a perfect, god-like husband - it is Meenakshi's ennai kappu festival. Aligned with the cardinal points, the street plans forms a giant mandala (group) whose sacred properties are believed to be activated during the mass clockwise circumambulation of the central temple.
FESTIVALS
The most important festival associated with the temple is the "Meenakshi Thirukalyanam" (the divine marriage of Meenakshi) that is celebrated in April every year. The wedding of the divine couple is regarded as a classic instance of south Indian female-dominated marriage, an arrangement referred as "Madurai marriage". The male dominated marriage is called "Chidambaram marriage", referring to Shiva's uncontested dominance, ritual and mythic, at the famous Shiva temple of Chidhambaram. The marriage brings together rural and urban people, deities and mortals, Saivas (those who worship Shiva) and Vaishnavas (those who worship Vishnu) in order to celebrate Meenakshi as the royal monarch. During the one month period, there are a number of events including the "Ther Thiruvizhah" (chariot festival) and "Theppa Thiruvizhah" (float festival). Major Hindu festivals like Navrathri and Shivrathri are celebrated in the temple. Like most Shakti temples in Tamil Nadu, the Fridays during the Tamil months of Aadi (July–August) and Thai (January–February) are celebrated in the temple by thousands of devotees. "Avani Moola Utsavam" is a 10-day festival mainly devoted to Sundareswarar describes his various Thiruvilayadal meaning Shiva's sacred games.
LITERARY MENTION
Down the centuries, the temple has been a centre of education of Tamil culture, literature, art, music and dance. All three assemblies of Tamil language, the Tamil Sangam (about the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE), were held at Madurai. Tamil poets of different epochs participated in these assemblies and their composition is called Sangam literature. During the third Tamil sangam, the comparative merit of the poets was decided by letting the works float in the lotus tank of the temple. It was believed that a divine force would cause the work of superior merit to float on the surface while the inferior literary work would sink. Tevaram, the 7th-8th century Tamil canonoical work on Shiva, are works by the three prominent Nayanars (Saivites) namely Appar, Sundarar and Thirugnanasambandar. The temple has been glorified by the hymns of Tevaram by all the three poets. Different hymns of Sambandar on the temple mention the queen of Pandya Nadu, his desire to defeat Jains in debate, the miracles performed by him curing the king's fever, the Jains' provocation of Sambandar by burning his house and challenging him to debate, and Sambandar's eventual victory over them. A poem from the Third Tirumurai by Sambandar is as under –
"Lady who has eyes that are comparable to the startled eyes of the deer!
the great chief queen of the Vaḻuti! listen to what I say. Do not feel distressed that I am such a young boy from whose mouth milk is flowing. when the god in Tiruvālavāy stands by my side as help, I can not be easily defeated by the low people who inflict many sufferings on others and who live in hills beginning with great Āṉaimalai."
There are few poets in Tamil history who sang about goddess Parvati. The notable among them is Kumaraguruparar, a 17th-century Tamil poet, who composed Meenakshi Pillaitamil on Meenakshi of this temple. King Tirumalai Nayak's patronage of Kumaraguruparar has an important place in the history of pillaitamil (a genre of Tamil literature). Kumaraguruparar visited a lot of temples and when he visited this temple, he composed Meenakshi pillaitamil on Meenakshi. Legend has it that goddess appeared in the dreams of Nayak directing him to arrange the recital of Kumaraguruparar before a learned assembly. The king made elobrate arrangements for the event. Meenakshi impersonated herself in the form of a small girl and enjoyed the recital. As Kumaraguruparar was explaining the 61st verse, the goddess appreciated by garlanding the poet with a string of pearls and disappeared.
WIKIPEDIA
Ordering S.H. Figuarts is generally a major pain in the ass, particular for super hot properties. At least with Figma, there's a dedicated online store and a preorder time. With Figuarts, they're never announced and as such I generally run into them by surprise.
As such, I blinked and I missed EVERY-SINGLE-JAPANESE-SITE with regards to a figure from a little movie you may be familiar with - Captain Marvel. Who knew that a figure that pretty much nobody cared for would be so hard to actually find, and this was before the "controversy".
As I've said before, I liked the overall film. There were some questionable choices, as always, but as the father of two little girls I'm quite approving of the overall tone of the movie. Not because of the whole perceived SJW angle (and I say perceived because quite frankly, the movie would be the same to me regardless of gender), but because it speaks true of one thing - people will always talk shit about anything and everything you do, whether it be constructively or destructively. The point is to make a conscious choice to tell them all to go to hell if you're going to do things anyway. On a more personal note, I'm hoping to never be the Dad in that movie.
This Figuarts release comes with a somewhat sparse smattering of extras. There's the standard unhelmeted figure, two additional set of hands (open palm and spread palm), a Kree helmeted head, and two Photon energy effects for her closed fists.
And yes... again... no stand. Broken record, I know, but maybe if I whine enough one day it'll become a standard feature.
The base body of Carol appears to have the same as that of Infinity War Black Widow. Same articulation points (Black Widow hides her mid torso swivel better than Carol, but at the expense of limiting her ability to bend backwards).
As with Widow, I'm not overly enthusiastic about the hip design and really would have preferred either something like the Dragon Ball figures or the Fighting Body uses for Street Fighter as her ability to do any cool crouching poses is highly restricted.
I have no idea Scarlet Johansson and Brie Larson are the same height, but that's what the Figuarts are suggesting. What I DO know is that based on photos and some measurements, Carol appears to be way too much leg, though I do appreciate the bulkier appearance of the character due to the armoured nature of the battlesuit.
The unhelmeted sculpt of course uses that fancy new photo printing technology that Bandai has been employing as of late. Again, much like Widow, the end result is pretty good especially from a far enough away not to notice the specks from the printing process. Of the two, I feel the Widow face came out cleaner, but Marvel is no slouch. The accuracy of this printing technology is further bolstered by the fact that Bandai actually got the shape of her face right.
This is also an opportune time to point out that the final product face, thankfully, is much, much, much better than that really generic looking prototype picture that is floating around the Internet and even the back of the box. Sculpting of her hair is also pretty impressive, particularly given the small size. The hair, while nice looking, restricts the ability of the unhelmeted sculpt to look up.
Of course, Carol is sporting the facial expression which has made her an international sensation.
The helmeted sculpt is servicable. That's not meant to be taken in a negative way. It clean, well sculpted, and looks good. But, it's also got the same neutral expression as her normal sculpt. It would have been nice to see some emotion in this particular sculpt, especially seeing how she basically truly embraces her power by this point in the movie.
FYI, the head is attached to the neck post, a necessary step given that the head and neck get covered by the helmeted mode. Unfortunately, the peg on the body itself is not quite big enough for a completely firm connection, and as such the head is prone to falling out, with a greater occurrence with the unhelmeted sculpt.
While the figure is a bit sparse in the accessory department, it does make up for it in the paint and detailing areas. Yes, you are getting Tamashi Nations quality paint apps and paint masking, but more specifically it feels to me that this figure has a higher density of paint applications than any of the other female figures at the very least, and overall probably rivaled by characters such as Iron Man which have metal suits.
The body is literally covered all over with metallic paint, whether that be the primary red and blue, or the various gold and silver accents. There are some details sculpted into the suit itself, such as various grooves, buckles, pockets, and of course, actual fabric details, all of which are painted appropriately and cleanly.
I guess this is as good a time as any to point out that the hair is definitely more blonde than in the movie, where the brown comes out more. This colour here is actually more reminiscent of her colouring in the tidbit of Endgame that we see. Maybe this is foreshadowing of an Endgame Captain Marvel Figuarts at some point in time?
Did I mention that the figure really doesn't come with much in the way of accessories? This is an area that, admittedly, that the One:12 version destroys this figure, regardless of how things turn out. I believe that it comes with as much stuff as the Deluxe Hot Toys version does, instead of just the V-Trigger fists of Guile from Street Fighter V.
In conclusion, another solid, albeit somewhat limited, Figuarts entry into the Marvel world. I have to say that Figuarts really has come a far way from their laughable Avengers line, though strangely I don't think Steve Rogers has ever gotten, or will be receiving, the same photo printing tech that the ladies and Paul Rudd will be getting.
I now eagerly await the arrival of my Endgame Figuarts Black Widow.
These pictures are dedicated to my “make-up” day that I stole from southern Gansu earlier in the week. As mentioned in the Singing Sand post, I was having breakfast at Charley Johng’s on Wednesday morning and talking with the owner who recommended this day trip.
It started at 8:00 a.m. on a coach that picked me up outside her restaurant (before proceeding to a hotel to fill out the rest of the 45 seats). I wasn’t the only foreigner, but I was the only one who didn’t look Chinese (or speak fluent Mandarin). I met some friendly Chinese who were living in Vancouver, and some Hong Kong folks (who are Chinese, but they most certainly distinguish from mainlanders…and most foreigners understand why).
So, off we went on our sojourn with six or seven stops. We drove west through the aforementioned “real” Dunhuang for about 15-20 minutes before the mountains and desert landscape began to resume control.
Our first stop, less than half an hour out of town, was “Old Dunhuang.” Really, they mean to say, “Old Fake Dunhuang,” but I jest. It’s…an area that shoots as a television studio when someone wants to shoot things that look like the Old West, Chinese style. For the bargain price of 40 RMB (about $7 in the current market on 1/10/16), you get to wander around this fairly decent-sized fake fort with fake everything inside…and a random prop fighter jet inside…and, outside, the backdrop of both mountainous sand dunes and snow-capped mountains off in the distance. All in all, it was a rather unique setting – at least one I’d never experienced before.
After 40 minutes there (not 35, not 45, but 40…per Mr. Coach Driver), we all climbed back aboard and headed a little farther west to what I think they call the “Western Caves.” This is a repository of Buddhist art in grottoes west of town, but since the world-famous Mogao Grottoes are nearby (and also in my personal plan for tomorrow morning), I didn’t feel particularly inspired to spend the very cheap and fair price of 15 RMB to see a few pieces of art. In retrospect, perhaps I should have, but who knows? I may be back this way again someday. I did spend my time at the Western Caves enjoying the panoramic view of the same snow-capped mountains and desert from Old Dunhuang with the juxtaposition of this particular oasis (which is apparently why this grotto/temple was built here in the first place).
A few minutes later, we kept making our way west towards Xinjiang. At some point just west of Dunhuang, the old Silk Road split into a northern and southern route. One of the first mountain passes (and forts, where we were heading) along the southern route is Yangguan Pass 70 km. southwest of Dunhuang. It was built in the 1st century AD during the Western Han Dynasty. This place was particularly enjoyable for me. Having been to quite a few sections of the Great Wall (and very much looking forward to the westernmost terminal of the Ming Dynasty Great Wall here in Gansu a few days later), I’m very much accustomed to these historical reproductions…and really love when I find some “real” history; the authentic walls and posts, though 500 years later, are just weather-worn rock.
Yangguan had a very nice mix of both the fake and the real. For 60 RMB (roughly $9), we had access to the completely remade fort with its bastions, gift shops, museum (a very nice one, admittedly), and what not. Out the back of the fort, and about a mile in the distance on a hill, is the original: one of the watchtowers that helped guard travelers for centuries along the Silk Road. To get there, you can walk, take golf carts on steroids (the kind you find at zoos that carry about 12-15 people), or rent a horse. Since I’d ridden a camel the day before and have ridden horses quite a few times, I went the lazy way…and got chauffeured up the hill. The watchtower itself is fenced off – and rightfully so – but, right next to it is a fantastic place to take in the surrounding landscape, with views of the mountains about 50 kilometers off. After a delightful two hours or so at Yangguan, we had lunch as a group at a Chinese restaurant near the fort. (It’s fun to eat with Chinese; the whole table of six, eight, or ten people just order random dishes of food. Everyone gets a bowl of rice then it’s a mini-buffet with your chopsticks from then on out.)
After being well-fed for about $3, we boarded the iron stallion and headed back down to the main road, then back east about 5 kilometers to the only road that turned off this western highway. The only point, it seems, of this side road is to go to Jade Pass (which follows the northern route of the Silk Road about 30 km down and, beyond that another 70-80 kilometers, it ends at Yadan National Park.
First stop down the über-long spur road: Jade Pass, 90 km WNW of Dunhuang. To get there, all vehicles have to pass through a random checkpoint about 20 minutes down the road. Aside from that, it almost feels like you leave planet earth. I have never seen a flatter, more desolate landscape anywhere in my life. I almost imagine it’s what the lunar surface would feel like, with the exception of having a different atmosphere, gravitational pull, and what have you. Anyway, you catch my drift…
Jade Pass is beautiful landscape, minus the fort that you find at Yangguan Pass. The watchtower is in much better shape than those you find at Yangguan. But, unlike Yangguan, where they take better care of the watchtowers, over here at Jade Pass, you find plenty of pea-brained tourists ignoring signs (and fences) and climbing all over the watchtower as if it were a jungle gym. It’s times like these that it’s probably good my Mandarin is so poor. I would probably manage to somehow get myself deported, ironically, for yelling at idiots when I’m frustrated that they have no concept of conserving their own heritage. Running away from idiots as quickly as possible, I snapped a few pictures of the scenery…where more buffoons were blatantly ignoring signs and going where they oughtn’t. So, I cut my time at Jade Pass short and returned to the bus, which was waiting next to what looked to be a promising museum that we didn’t have the time to visit. We were apparently on a pretty tight schedule now.
Boarding the bus, we went a whole five minutes farther north for a stop to see the Han Dynasty Great Wall. Now, a few things to know. When people mention the “Great Wall” of China, it’s actually a series of walls that form a patchwork length that crosses from Shanhaiguan at the eastern terminal (ending famously in the sea), though there is a section in Liaoning province called Hushan that borders North Korea that I’ve been to and claims that it is the rightful eastern terminus of the wall. The western terminus of that wall is nearby (relatively speaking) at Jiayuguan here in Gansu province. The whole patchwork nature of that wall is emphasized by sections like Hushan. I only mention it now because the Great Wall of China refers to the Ming Dynasty wall…mostly built between 1368-1644 (with some sections marginally older, like Juyongguan, which dates to the Yuan Dynasty, immediately before the Ming).
The Han Dynasty wall out here dates to the original dynasty of China…in the 3rd century BC. So the wall here, while not as impressive as the rebuilt Ming sections of the wall in terms of visual appearance floored me because it’s original and almost 2,500 years old. The way the wall here was built (mud, adobe, etc.) is completely different than the Ming wall that came 1,500 years later. It’s shorter – in length (obviously) and height, but much longer in history. There is so little of this wall left here, though, that it would never be worth visiting on its own…or possible. Ten to fifteen minutes here is more than enough to get the “wall experience.”
From there, we were on to the ultimate destination of the day: Yadan National Park. I also discovered the reason we were on such a tight schedule. Yadan National Park is a very large park. Though this is lost in translation, I think the Chinese market it as sort of an “out of this world” experience, though I could be way off base. In reality, this used to be a seabed tens of thousands of years ago and the rock formations that are left here are the remnants of harder rocks that didn’t erode as quickly over time…which gives this park its current appearance.
Yadan National Park is strictly controlled. Admission was 150 or 180 RMB from what I recall (no more than $30) and, like Jiuzhaigou in Sichuan, getting around the park is tightly controlled. (You have to take park-controlled buses from point to point, though at the various points, you can go out and explore the area.)
The landscape at this park, as mentioned, is quite unique. For anyone who has seen Chinese movies (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, for example, or Zhang Yimou’s Hero), the landscape will be familiar. The “far west” scenes in those movies were filmed near here in areas with identical landscapes. (I’m about 90% Hero’s western landscape was filmed just over the provincial border in Xinjiang. Crouching Tiger’s…I’m much less certain.)
After a few stops, we found that we were out in the middle of this out-of-this-world ghost city (Chinese definitely like to call these ghost cities) for a stunning sunset. After staying around for sunset for 30-45 minutes, we finally headed back to the visitor center and then boarded our own coach for the long, flat, 2-3 hour ride back to Dunhuang, where I gladly spent my last night in the nameless hotel before starting Friday’s slow trip back towards Lanzhou. Before bidding farewell to Dunhuang, though, Friday morning had an incredible trip – mostly unphotographed (as photography is forbidden and I tend to follow rules when traveling) of the Mogao Grottoes. More to come…
As usual, I hope you enjoy the pictures. Please feel free to leave any comments, questions, or suggestions.
The Brihadeshvara Temple at Thanjavur in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva. It is an important example of Tamil architecture achieved during the Chola dynasty. The temple is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the "Great Living Chola Temples".
This is one of the largest temples in India and one of India's most prized architectural sites. Built by emperor Raja Raja Chola I and completed in 1010 AD, Peruvudaiyaar Temple, also popularly known as the 'Big Temple', turned 1000 years old in 2010.
Thanjavur Periya Kovil stands amidst fortified walls that were probably added in the 16th century. The vimanam (or temple tower) is 66 m) high and is among the tallest of its kind in the world. The Kumbam (Kalasha or Chikharam, the apex or the bulbous structure on the top) of the temple is carved out of a single rock and it weighs around 80 tons. There is a big statue of Nandi (sacred bull), carved out of a single rock, at the entrance measuring about 16 feet long and 13 feet high. The entire temple structure is made out of granite, the nearest sources of which are close to Tiruchirappalli, about 60 km to the west of Thanjavur.
HISTORY
The temple had its foundations laid out by the Tamil emperor Arulmozhivarman, popularly called Rajaraja Chola I, in 1002 CE, as the first of the great Tamil Chola building projects.
The Brihadeshvara Temple was built to grace the throne of the Chola empire in compliance to a command given to him in his dream. The scale and grandeur is in the Chola tradition. An axial and symmetrical geometry rules the temple layout. Temples from this period and the following two centuries are an expression of the Tamils (Chola) wealth, power and artistic expertise. The emergence of such features as the multifaceted columns with projecting square capitals signal the arrival of the new Chola style.
The Brihadeshvara Temple was built to be the royal temple to display the emperor's vision of his power and his relationship to the universal order. The temple was the site of the major royal ceremonies such as anointing the emperor and linking him with its deity, Shiva, and the daily rituals of the deities were mirrored by those of the king. It is an architectural example showcasing the pure form of the Dravida type of temple architecture and representative of the Chola Empire ideology and the Tamil civilisation in Southern India. The temple "testify to the brilliant achievements of the Chola in architecture, sculpture, painting and bronze casting."
CONSTRUCTION
The wish to build a mammoth temple like this is said to have occurred to Raja Raja while he stayed at Sri Lanka as an emperor.
The esteemed architect and engineer of the temple was Kunjara Mallan Raja Raja Perunthachan as stated in inscriptions found at the temple. The temple was built per ancient texts called Vaastu Shastras and Agamas. He is the ancient ancestor of the doyan of Vaastu Vedic architecture, the late Dr. V. Ganapti Sthapati of Chennai and Mahabalipurim (architect of the 133' granite Thiruvalluvar statue at the tip of south India). Members of his family still live and practice the ancient art and science. The American University of Mayonic Science and Technology was initiated by Dr. V. Ganapati Sthapati to perpetuate the same form of architectural principles used by Kunjara Mallan Raja Raja Perunthachan to build the Brihadeeswarar temple. The temple was built using a measure of 1 3/8-inch called an angula (24 units equalling 33 inches called a hasta, muzam, or kishku). This is the same measure found in ancient Lothal and other sites in the Indus Valley dating back 4000 - 6000 years. This same measure is used to build structures compliant with the Vaastu Shastras and Agamas today. While some builders use a different measure this is considered a standard due to its antiquity.
This temple is the first building fully built by granite and finished within 5yrs [1004AD – 1009AD]. The solid base of the temple raises about 5 metres, above which stone deities and representatives of Shiva dance. The huge kalasam or Vimanam (top portion of the shrine) is believed to weigh 81.28 tonnes of single stone block and was raised to its present height by dragging on an inclined plane of 6.44 km. The big Nandi (bull), weighing about 20 tonnes is made of a single stone and is about 2 m in height, 6 m in length and 2.5 m in width. The presiding deity of lingam is 3.7m tall. The prakaram (outer precincts of the temple) measures 240m by 125m. The outer wall of the upper storey is carved with 81 dance karanas – postures of Bharathanatyam, the classical dance of Tamil Nadu. The shrine of Goddess was added by Pandyas during the 13th century, Subramanya Shrine by Vijayanagara rulers and the Vinayaka shrine was renovated by Maratha rulers.
TEMPLE COMPLEX
The temple complex sits on the banks of a river that was channelled to make a moat around the complex's outer walls, the walls being built like a fortress. The complex is made up of many structures that are aligned axially. The complex can be entered either on one axis through a five-story gopuram or with a second access directly to the huge main quadrangle through a smaller free-standing gopuram. The massive size of the main Vimanam (Shikhara) is ca. 60 meters high, with 16 elaborately articulated stories, and dominates the main quadrangle. Pilaster, piers, and attached columns are placed rhythmically covering every surface of the Vimanam.
The gopuram of the main entrance is 30 m high, smaller than the vimana. It is unusual in the dravidian architecture where the gopurams are generally the main towers and taller than the vimanam.
MAIN TEMPLE
A first rectangular surrounding wall, 270 m by 140 m, marks the outer boundary. The main temple is in the center of the spacious quadrangle composed of a sanctuary, a Nandi, a pillared hall and an assembly hall (mandapas), and many sub-shrines. The most important part of the temple is the inner mandapa which is surrounded by massive walls that are divided into levels by sharply cut sculptures and pilasters providing deep bays and recesses. Each side of the sanctuary has a bay emphasising the principle cult icons. The karuvarai, a Tamil word meaning the interior of the sanctum sanctorum, is the inner most sanctum and focus of the temple where an image of the primary deity, Shiva, resides. Inside is a huge stone linga. The word Karuvarai means "womb chamber" from Tamil word karu for foetus. Only priests are allowed to enter this inner-most chamber.
In the Dravida style, the Karuvarai takes the form of a miniature vimana with other features exclusive to southern Indian temple architecture such as the inner wall together with the outer wall creating a pradakshina around the garbhagriha for circumambulation (pradakshina). The entrance is highly decorated. The inside chamber housing the image of the god is the sanctum sanctorum, the garbhagriha. The garbhagriha is square and sits on a plinth, its location calculated to be a point of total equilibrium and harmony as it is representative of a microcosm of the universe. In the center is placed the image of the deity. The royal bathing-hall where Rajaraja the great gave gifts is to the east of the hall of Irumudi-Soran.
The circumambulation winds around the massive lingam in the garbhagriha and is repeated in an upper story, presenting the idea that Chola Empire freely offered access to the gods.
The inner mandapa leads out to a rectangular mandapa and then to a twenty-columned porch with three staircases leading down. Sharing the same stone plinth is a small open mandapa dedicated to Nandi, Shiva's sacred bull mount.
TEMPLE DEITIES
The "moolavar" or prime deity of the Brihadeeswarar Temple is Shiva. All deities, particularly those placed in the niches of the outer wall (Koshta Moorthigal) like Dakshinamurthy, Surya, Chandra are of huge size. The Brihadiswarar temple is one of the rare temples which has idols for "Ashta-dikpaalakas" (Guardians of the directions) – Indra, Agni, Yama, Nirṛti, Varuṇa, Vāyu, Kubera, Īśāna – each of whom was originally represented by a life-sized statue, approximately 6 feet tall, enshrined in a separate temple located in the respective direction. (Only Agni, Varuṇa, Vāyu and Īśāna are preserved in situ.)
ADJOINING STRUCTURES
Surrounding the main temple are two walled enclosures. The outer wall is high, defining the temple complex area. Here is the massive gopuram or gateway mentioned above. Within this a portico, a barrel vaulted gorpuram with over 400 pillars, is enclosed by a high wall interspersed with huge gopurams axially lined up to the main temple.
FEATURES
Another widely held belief is that the shadow of the gopuram (pyramidal tower usually over the gateway of a temple) never falls on the ground. . The temple is said to be made up of about 60,000 tons of sandstone and granite. The Kumbam itself, a 60 ton granite stone carved in one piece, on top of the main gopuram is believed to have been taken to the top by creating an inclined slope to the height of 66m to the top of the gopuram. The prevailing belief is that a mud-slope, which starts at about three miles from the temple site, from Thirukoilore (birthplace of Raja raja's mother) near Sri Virateshvara swamy temple portrays the figure of the Thanjavur Temple. Elephants might have been used to drag the stone up the slope. This was claimed to be the only part of the gopuram, which does not cast a shadow that fall on the ground, at least not within the temple premises which is an architectural amazement in the world of architecture.
MURALS
The temple has Chola frescoes on the walls around the sanctum sanctorum potryaing Shiva in action, destroying demonic forts, dancing and sending a white elephant to transport a devotee to heaven. These frescoes were discovered in the 1940s and portray the mythological episodes of the journey of Saint Sundarar and the Chera King to heaven, the battle scene of Tripurantaka (Lord Siva) with Asuras (demons). The Chola artists have proved their mettle by portraying even the Asura women with a sense of beauty. Some of the paintings in the sanctum sanctorum and the walls in the passage had been damaged because of the soot that had deposited on them. Owing to the continuous exposure to smoke and soot from the lamps and burning of camphor in the sanctum sanctorum over a period of centuries certain parts of the Chola paintings on the circumambulatory passage walls had been badly damaged. The Tanjore Nayak kings replaced them with a few paintings of their own, about 400 years ago. The Archaeological Survey of India, for the first time in the world, used its unique de-stucco process to restore 16 Nayak paintings, which were superimposed on 1000-year-old Chola frescoes. These 400-year-old paintings have been mounted on fibre glass boards, displayed at a separate pavilion.
TEMPLE PERSONNEL
The temple was consecrated in 1010 CE by Raja Raja Chola I & in 2010 a celebration commemorated the temple's thousandth anniversary. The temple maintained a staff of 1000 people in various capacities with 400 being temple dancers Besides the Brahmin priests, these included record-keepers, musicians, scholars, and craftsman of every type as well as housekeeping staff. In those days the temple was a hub of business activities for the flower, milk, oil, and ghee merchants, all of whom made a regular supply of their respective goods for the temple for its poojas and during festival seasons. Moreover as evidenced by the inscriptions that found in the compound wall of this temple, the temple had always been serving as a platform for the dancers who excelled in the traditional dance form of Bharatnatyam. vallamuthu minnadi generation worshipped this temple.
WIKIPEDIA
Kathmandu Durbar Square (Nepali: वसन्तपुर दरवार क्षेत्र, Basantapur Darbar Kshetra) in front of the old royal palace of the former Kathmandu Kingdom is one of three Durbar (royal palace) Squares in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal, all of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Several buildings in the Square collapsed due to a major earthquake on 25 April 2015. Durbar Square was surrounded with spectacular architecture and vividly showcases the skills of the Newar artists and craftsmen over several centuries. The Royal Palace was originally at Dattaraya square and was later moved to the Durbar square.
The Kathmandu Durbar Square held the palaces of the Malla and Shah kings who ruled over the city. Along with these palaces, the square surrounds quadrangles, revealing courtyards and temples. It is known as Hanuman Dhoka Durbar Square, a name derived from a statue of Hanuman, the monkey devotee of Lord Ram, at the entrance of the palace.
CONTENTS
HISTORY AND CONSTRUCTION
The preference for the construction of royal palaces at this site dates back to as early as the Licchavi period in the third century. Even though the present palaces and temples have undergone repeated and extensive renovations and nothing physical remains from that period. Names like Gunapo and Gupo, which are the names referred to the palaces in the square in early scriptures, imply that the palaces were built by Gunakamadev, a King ruling late in the tenth-century. When Kathmandu City became independent under the rule of King Ratna Malla (1484–1520), the palaces in the square became the Royal Palaces for its Malla Kings. When Prithvi Narayan Shah invaded the Kathmandu Valley in 1769, he favored the Kathmandu Durbar Square for his palace. Other subsequent Shah kings continued to rule from the square until 1896 when they moved to the Narayan Hiti Palace.
The square is still the center of important royal events like the coronation of King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah in 1975 and King Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah in 2001.
Though there are no written archives stating the history of Kathmandu Durbar Square, construction of the palace in the square is credited to Sankharadev (1069–1083). As the first king of the independent Kathmandu City, Ratna Malla is said to have built the Taleju temple in the Northern side of the palace in 1501. For this to be true then the temple would have had to have been built in the vihara style as part of the palace premise surrounding the Mul Chok courtyard for no evidence of a separate structure that would match this temple can be found within the square.
Construction of the Karnel Chok is not clearly stated in any historical inscriptions; although, it is probably the oldest among all the courtyards in the square. The Bhagavati Temple, originally known as a Narayan Temple, rises above the mansions surrounding it and was added during the time of Jagajaya Malla in the early eighteenth century. The Narayan idol within the temple was stolen so Prithvi Narayan Shah replaced it with an image of Bhagavati, completely transforming the name of the temple.
The oldest temples in the square are those built by Mahendra Malla (1560–1574). They are the temples of Jagannath, Kotilingeswara Mahadev, Mahendreswara, and the Taleju Temple. This three-roofed Taleju Temple was established in 1564, in a typical Newari architectural style and is elevated on platforms that form a pyramid-like structure. It is said that Mahendra Malla, when he was residing in Bhaktapur, was highly devoted to the Taleju Temple there; the Goddess being pleased with his devotion gave him a vision asking him to build a temple for her in the Kathmandu Durbar Square. With a help of a hermit, he designed the temple to give it its present form and the Goddess entered the temple in the form of a bee.
His successors Sadasiva (1575–1581), his son, Shiva Simha (1578–1619), and his grandson, Laksmi Narsingha (1619–1641), do not seem to have made any major additions to the square. During this period of three generations the only constructions to have occurred were the establishment of Degutale Temple dedicated to Goddess Mother Taleju by Shiva Simha and some enhancement in the royal palace by Laksminar Simha.
UNDER PRATAP MALLA
In the time of Pratap Malla, son of Laksminar Simha, the square was extensively developed. He was an intellectual, a pious devotee, and especially interested in arts. He called himself a Kavindra, king of poets, and boasted that he was learned in fifteen different languages. A passionate builder, following his coronation as a king, he immediately began enlargements to his royal palace, and rebuilt some old temples and constructed new temples, shrines and stupas around his kingdom.During the construction of his palace, he added a small entrance in the traditional, low and narrow Newari style. The door was elaborately decorated with carvings and paintings of deities and auspicious sings and was later transferred to the entrance of Mohan Chok. In front of the entrance he placed the statue of Hanuman thinking that Hanuman would strengthen his army and protect his home. The entrance leads to Nasal Chok, the courtyard where most royal events such as coronation, performances, and yagyas, holy fire rituals, take place. It was named after Nasadya, the God of Dance, and during the time of Pratap Malla the sacred mask dance dramas performed in Nasal Chok were widely famed. In one of these dramas, it is said that Pratap Malla himself played the role of Lord Vishnu and that the spirit of the Lord remained in the king's body even after the play. After consulting his Tantric leaders, he ordered a stone image of Lord Vishnu in his incarnation as Nara Simha, the half-lion and half-human form, and then transferred the spirit into the stone. This fine image of Nara Simha made in 1673 still stands in the Nasal Chok. In 1650, he commissioned for the construction of Mohan Chok in the palace. This chok remained the royal residential courtyard for many years and is believed to store a great amount of treasure under its surface. Pratap Malla also built Sundari Chok about this time. He placed a slab engraved with lines in fifteen languages and proclaimed that he who can understand the inscription would produce the flow of milk instead of water from Tutedhara, a fountain set in the outer walls of Mohan Chok. However elaborate his constructions may have been, they were not simply intended to emphasize his luxuries but also his and the importance of others' devotion towards deities. He made extensive donations to temples and had the older ones renovated. Next to the palace, he built a Krishna temple, the Vamsagopala, in an octagonal shape in 1649. He dedicated this temple to his two Indian wives, Rupamati and Rajamati, as both had died during the year it was built. In Mohan Chok, he erected a three roofed Agamachem temple and a unique temple with five superimposing roofs. After completely restoring the Mul Chok, he donated to the adjoining Taleju Temple. To the main temple of Taleju, he donated metal doors in 1670. He rebuilt the Degutale Temple built by his grandfather, Siva Simha, and the Taleju Temple in the palace square. As a substitute to the Indreswara Mahadeva Temple in the distant village of Panauti he built a Shiva temple, Indrapura, near his palace in the square. He carved hymns on the walls of the Jagannath Temple as prayers to Taleju in the form of Kali.
At the southern end of the square, near Kasthamandap at Maru, which was the main city crossroads for early traders, he built another pavilion named Kavindrapura, the mansion of the king of poets. In this mansion he set an idol of dancing Shiva, Nasadyo, which today is highly worshipped by dancers in the Valley.
In the process of beautifying his palace, he added fountains, ponds, and baths. In Sundari Chok, he established a low bath with a golden fountain. He built a small pond, the Naga Pokhari, in the palace adorned with Nagakastha, a wooden serpent, which is said he had ordered stolen from the royal pond in the Bhaktapur Durbar Square. He restored the Licchavi stone sculptures such as the Jalasayana Narayana, the Kaliyadamana, and the Kala Bhairav. An idol of Jalasayana Narayana was placed in a newly created pond in the Bhandarkhal garden in the eastern wing of the palace. As a substitute to the idol of Jalasayana Narayana in Buddhanilkantha, he channeled water from Buddhanilkantha to the pond in Bhandarkhal due bestow authenticity. The Kalyadana, a manifestation of Lord Krishna destroying Kaliya, a water serpent, is placed in Kalindi Chok, which is adjacent to the Mohan Chok. The approximately ten-feet-high image of terrifyingly portrayed Kal Bhairav is placed near the Jagannath Temple. This image is the focus of worship in the chok especially during Durga Puja.
With the death of Pratap Malla in 1674, the overall emphasis on the importance of the square came to a halt. His successors retained relatively insignificant power and the prevailing ministers took control of most of the royal rule. The ministers encountered little influence under these kings and, increasingly, interest of the arts and additions to the square was lost on them. They focused less on culture than Pratap Malla during the three decades that followed his death, steering the city and country more towards the arenas of politics and power, with only a few minor constructions made in the square. These projects included Parthivendra Malla building a temple referred to as Trailokya Mohan or Dasavatara, dedicated to Lord Vishnu in 1679. A large statue of Garuda, the mount of Lord Vishnu, was added in front of it a decade later. Parthivendra Malla added a pillar with image of his family in front of the Taleju Temple.
Around 1692, Radhilasmi, the widowed queen of Pratap Malla, erected the tall temples of Shiva known as Maju Deval near the Garuda image in the square. This temple stands on nine stepped platforms and is one of the tallest buildings in the square. Then her son, Bhupalendra Malla, took the throne and banished the widowed queen to the hills. His death came early at the age of twenty one and his widowed queen, Bhuvanalaksmi, built a temple in the square known as Kageswara Mahadev. The temple was built in the Newari style and acted as a substitute for worship of a distant temple in the hills. After the earthquake in 1934, the temple was restored with a dome roof, which was alien to the Newari architecture.
Jayaprakash Malla, the last Malla king to rule Kathmandu, built a temple for Kumari and Durga in her virginal state. The temple was named Kumari Bahal and was structured like a typical Newari vihara. In his house resides the Kumari, a girl who is revered as the living goddess. He also made a chariot for Kumari and in the courtyard had detailed terra cotta tiles of that time laid down.
UNDER THE SHAH DYNASTY
During the Shah dynasty that followed, the Kathmandu Durbar Square saw a number of changes. Two of the most unique temples in the square were built during this time. One is the Nautale, a nine-storied building known as Basantapur Durbar. It has four roofs and stands at the end of Nasal Chok at the East side of the palace. It is said that this building was set as a pleasure house. The lower three stories were made in the Newari farmhouse style. The upper floors have Newari style windows, sanjhya and tikijhya, and some of them are slightly projected from the wall. The other temple is annexed to the Vasantapur Durbar and has four-stories. This building was initially known as Vilasamandira, or Lohom Chok, but is now commonly known as Basantapur or Tejarat Chok. The lower floors of the Basantapur Chok display extensive woodcarvings and the roofs are made in popular the Mughal style. Archives state that Prthivi Narayan Shah built these two buildings in 1770.
Rana Bahadur Shah was enthroned at the age of two. Bahadur Shah, the second son of Prithvi Narayan Shah, ruled as a regent for his young nephew Rana Bahadur Shah for a close to a decade from 1785 to 1794 and built a temple of Shiva Parvati in the square. This one roofed temple is designed in the Newari style and is remarkably similar to previous temples built by the Mallas. It is rectangular in shape, and enshrines the Navadurga, a group of goddesses, on the ground floor. It has a wooden image of Shiva and Parvati at the window of the upper floor, looking out at the passersby in the square. Another significant donation made during the time of Rana Bahadur Shah is the metal-plated head of Swet Bhairav near the Degutale Temple. It was donated during the festival of Indra Jatra in 1795, and continues to play a major role during the festival every year. This approximately twelve feet high face of Bhairav is concealed behind a latticed wooden screen for the rest of the year. The following this donation Rana Bahadur donated a huge bronze bell as an offering to the Goddess Taleju. Together with the beating of the huge drums donated by his son Girvan Yudha, the bell was rung every day during the daily ritual worship to the goddess. Later these instruments were also used as an alarm system. However, after the death of his beloved third wife Kanimati Devi due to smallpox, Rana Bahadur Shah turned mad with grief and had many images of gods and goddesses smashed including the Taleju statue and bell, and Sitala, the goddess of smallpox.
In 1908, a palace, Gaddi Durbar, was built using European architectural designs. The Rana Prime Ministers who had taken over the power but not the throne of the country from the Shahs Kings from 1846 to 1951 were highly influenced by European styles. The Gaddi Durbar is covered in white plaster, has Greek columns and adjoins a large audience hall, all foreign features to Nepali architecture. The balconies of this durbar were reserved for the royal family during festivals to view the square below.
Some of the parts of the square like the Hatti Chok near the Kumari Bahal in the southern section of the square were removed during restoration after the devastating earthquake in 1934. While building the New Road, the southeastern part of the palace was cleared away, leaving only fragments in places as reminders of their past. Though decreased from its original size and attractiveness from its earlier seventeenth-century architecture, the Kathmandu Durbar Square still displays an ancient surrounding that spans abound five acres of land. It has palaces, temples, quadrangles, courtyards, ponds, and images that were brought together over three centuries of the Malla, the Shah, and the Rana dynasties. It was destroyed in the April 2015 Nepal earthquake.
VISITING
Kathmandu's Durbar Square is the site of the Hanuman Dhoka Palace Complex, which was the royal Nepalese residence until the 19th century and where important ceremonies, such as the coronation of the Nepalese monarch, took place. The palace is decorated with elaborately-carved wooden windows and panels and houses the King Tribhuwan Memorial Museum and the Mahendra Museum. It is possible to visit the state rooms inside the palace.
Time and again the temples and the palaces in the square have gone through reconstruction after being damaged by natural causes or neglect. Presently there are less than ten quadrangles in the square. The temples are being preserved as national heritage sites and the palace is being used as a museum. Only a few parts of the palace are open for visitors and the Taleju temples are only open for people of Hindu and Buddhist faiths.
At the southern end of Durbar Square is one of the most curious attractions in Nepal, the Kumari Chok. This gilded cage contains the Raj Kumari, a girl chosen through an ancient and mystical selection process to become the human incarnation of the Hindu mother goddess, Durga. She is worshiped during religious festivals and makes public appearances at other times for a fee paid to her guards.
WIKIPEDIA
The Dalí Theatre and Museum Figueres Catalonia Spain
(Catalan: Teatre-Museu Dalí, IPA: [teˈatɾə muˈzɛw ðəˈɫi], Spanish: Teatro Museo Dalí), is a museum of the artist Salvador Dalí in his home town of Figueres, in Catalonia, Spain.
Building
The heart of the museum is the building that housed the town's theater when Dalí was a child, where one of the first public exhibitions of young Dalí's art was shown. The old theater was burned during the Spanish Civil War and remained in a state of ruin for decades. In 1960, Dalí and the mayor of Figueres decided to rebuild it as a museum dedicated to the town's most famous son.
In 1968, the city council approved the plan, and construction began the following year. The architects were Joaquim de Ros i Ramis and Alexandre Bonaterra. The museum opened on September 28, 1974,with continuing expansion through the mid-1980s. The museum now includes buildings and courtyards adjacent to the old theater building.
The museum displays the single largest and most diverse collection of works by Salvador Dalí, the core of which was from the artist's personal collection. In addition to Dalí paintings from all decades of his career, there are Dalí sculptures, 3-dimensional collages, mechanical devices, and other curiosities from Dalí's imagination. A highlight is a 3-dimensional anamorphic living-room installation with custom furniture that looks like the face of Mae West when viewed from a certain spot.
The museum also houses a small selection of works by other artists collected by Dalí, ranging from El Greco and Bougereau to Marcel Duchamp and John de Andrea, In accordance with Dalí's specific request, a second-floor gallery is devoted to the work of his friend and fellow Catalan artist Antoni Pitxot, who also became director of the museum after Dalí's death.
A glass geodesic dome cupola crowns the stage of the old theater, and Dalí himself is buried in a crypt below the stage floor. The space formerly occupied by the audience has been transformed into a courtyard open to the sky, with Dionysian nude figurines standing in the old balcony windows.
A Dalí installation inside a full-sized automobile, inspired by Rainy Taxi (1938), is parked near the center of the space.
Art collection
The Dalí Theatre and Museum holds the largest collection of major works by Dalí in a single location. Some of the most important exhibited works are Port Alguer (1924), The Spectre of Sex-appeal (1932), Soft self-portrait with grilled bacon (1941), Poetry of America—the Cosmic Athletes (1943), Galarina (1944–45), Basket of Bread (1945), Leda Atomica (1949), Galatea of the Spheres (1952) and Crist de la Tramuntana (1968).
There is also a set of works created by the artist expressly for the Theater-Museum, including the Mae West room, the Palace of the Windroom, the Monument to Francesc Pujols, and the Cadillac plujós.
A collection of holographic art by Dalí, and a collection of jewelry he designed are on display. Another room contains a bathtub and a side table with an open drawer and a lamp, all of which Dalí had installed upside-down on the ceiling.
An extension to the museum building contains a room dedicated to optical illusions, stereographs, and anamorphic art created by Dalí. The artist's final works, including his last oil painting, The Swallow's Tail (1983), are on display here.
THE DALINIAN SYMBOLS
A study of the work of Dalí, reveals some systematically present symbols in all his work. It's fetish objects that apparently have little in common: crutches, sea urchins, ants, bread...
Dalí uses these symbols so as to make it more meaningful to the message of his painting. The contrast of a hard shell and a soft interior is at the heart of his thinking and his art. This contrast outside-(hard/soft) is consistent with psychological design whereby individuals produce (hard) defenses around the vulnerable psyche (flexible). Dalí knew very well the work of Freud and his followers, even if its iconography derives absolutely no psychoanalytic thought.
ANGELS
They have the power to enter the celestial vault, communicating with God and thus achieve mystical union that concerns both the painter. Figures of angels painted by Dalí often borrow traits of Gala, incarnation, for Dali, purity and nobility.
CRUTCHES
It may be the only support of a figure or the necessary support of a form unable to stand alone. Dalí the view child, in the attic of his father's House. It should take and will never part. This subject gave him an assurance and an arrogance which he had never yet been able. In the short dictionary of Surrealism (1938), Dalí gives the following definition: "wooden Support deriving from the Cartesian philosophy. Generally used to serve as a support to the tenderness of the soft structures."
ELEPHANTS
The dalinian elephants are usually represented with the long legs of desire invisible to many bearings, bearing on their Obelisk back symbol of power and domination. The weight supported by the frail legs of the animal evokes weightlessness.
SNAILS
The snail is related to an important milestone in the life of Dalí: his encounter with Sigmund Freud. Dalí believed that nothing happens just by accident, he was captivated by the vision of a snail on a bicycle outside the home of Freud. The link is then made him between a human head and the snail, he associated specifically with the head of Freud. As for the egg, the outer part of the (hard) shell and the inner (soft) body of the snail site and the geometry of its curves it enchantèrent.
ANTS
Symbol of decay and decomposition. Dalí ants first met in his childhood, observing the remains decomposed small animals devoured by them. He observed with fascination and repulsion, and continued to use them in his work, as a symbol of decadence and ephemeral.
SOFT WATCHES
Dalí has often said, "the materialization of the flexibility of time and the indivisibility of space... It is a fluid." The unexpected softness of the watch also represents the psychological aspect by which the speed of time, although accurate in its scientific definition, can greatly vary in its human perception. The idea came to him after a meal while he contemplated the remains of a runny camembert. He decided to paint over the landscape that served as backdrop for two soft watches which one hung miserably to an olive branch.
EGG
Christian symbol of the resurrection of Christ and the emblem of purity and perfection. The egg evokes by its appearance and its minerality dear symbolism to Dali, earlier, intrauterine life and re-birth.
SEA URCHIN
His "exoskeleton" (the shell sits outside), Harris of thorns, can make you very unpleasant a first contact with the animal. The shell on the other hand contains soft body (one of the favorite dishes of Dali, who was known to eat a dozen at each meal). The Sea Urchin shell, stripped of its spines, appears in many of his paintings.
BREAD
Is it fear of Miss, Dalí represents it in his paintings and also begins to make surrealist objects with bread. In his paintings, loaves more often have something 'hard' and phallic, opposed to the "soft" watches. Dali has always been a great admirer of the bread. It tapissera of Catalan round loaves Figueras Museum walls.
LANDSCAPES
Traditional space (based on the perspective and the paintings of the Renaissance). Realistic landscape strewn with strange and unreal objects located in a natural environment. The background and how to use landscapes are one of the strengths of the art of Dali. They contribute to create the atmosphere of unreality of his paintings (landscape of his native Catalonia and vast plain of Ampurdan surrounding Figueras).
DRAWERS
Human bodies that open by drawers are found repeatedly in paintings and objects from Dali. They symbolize the memory and the unconscious and refer to "thought to be drawers", a concept inherited from the reading of Freud. They express the mystery of hidden secrets. Most of the children explore each drawer, cabinet and wardrobe of their home.
VENUS OF MILO
It is part long's personal mythology of the painter. She is the first woman he model child in clay from a reproduction adorning the family dining room. It is also that he discovered on a box of crayons in New York. He finds stupid expression on his face that he nevertheless considered own to perfect but inadequate female beauty in an elegant woman whose gaze should be or seem intelligent. Dalí made several transformations of Venus: the space Venus, Venus with drawers...
English
Maritime Museum
The Maritime Museum (Portuguese: Museu de Marinha) of Lisbon is dedicated to all aspects of the History of navigation in Portugal. The museum is administered by the Portuguese Navy and is located in the touristic district of Belém. It occupies a part of the neo-Manueline Western wing of the Jerónimos Monastery (together with the National Museum of Archaeology) as well as a modern annex built to the North of the monastery.
The history of the museum is deeply related to King Luís I (1838-1889), who was a lover of oceanographic studies and an accomplished navigator himself. He created in 1863 a collection of items related to the preservation of maritime history of Portugal, a collection that was enlarged in the following decades, culminating in the inauguration of the Maritime Museum in 1963 in its present location.
The exhibits include historical paintings, archaeological items and many scale models of ships used in Portugal since the 15th century. It is one of the most visited Portuguese museums.
Jerónimos Monastery
The Hieronymites Monastery, is located in the Belém district of Lisbon, Portugal. This magnificent monastery can be considered one of the most prominent monuments in Lisbon and is certainly one of the most successful achievements of the Manueline style (Portuguese late-Gothic). In 1983, it was classified by the UNESCO, with nearby Belém Tower, as a World Heritage Site.
History
The house for the Hieronymite monks was built on the same site of the Ermida do Restelo, a hermitage that was founded by Henry the Navigator at about 1450. It was at this hermitage, that was already in disrepair, that Vasco da Gama and his men spent the night in prayer before departing for India in 1497
The existing structure was started on the orders of Manuel I (1515–1521) to commemorate Vasco da Gama's successful return from India. It was originally meant as a church for the burial of the House of Aviz, but it also became a house of prayer for seamen leaving or entering port.
Construction of the monastery began in 1502 and took 50 years to complete. He used pedra lioz, a local gold-coloured limestone, for its construction. The building of the monastery was funded by a 5% tax on eastern spices, with the exceptions of pepper, cinnamon, and cloves, revenue from which went straight to the Crown. By this influx of riches, the architects had enough financial margin to think big. The enormous amount of funds needed for this monastery meant abandoning the construction of the Aviz pantheon in the Monastery of Batalha.
The monastery was designed in the Manueline style by Diogo de Boitaca (who was probably one of the originators of this style with the Monastery of Jesus of Setúbal in Setúbal). He built the church, the monastery, the sacristy, and the refectory. He was succeeded by the Spaniard João de Castilho, who took charge of construction in around 1517. Castilho gradually moved from the Manueline style to the Plateresco style, a style with lavish decorations that remind of silver ware (plata). There were several sculptors who made their mark on this building. Nicolau Chanterene added depth with his Renaissance themes. The construction came to a halt when the king Manuel I died in 1521.
The architect Diogo de Torralva resumed the construction of the monastery in 1550, adding the main chapel, the choir, and completing the two stories of the monastery, using only Renaissance motifs. His work was continued in 1571 by Jérôme de Rouen (also called Jerónimo de Ruão) who added some Classical elements. The construction stopped in 1580 with the union of Spain and Portugal, because the building of the Escorial in Spain was now draining away all the funds.
The monastery withstood the Great Earthquake of 1755 without too much damage. But when the building became vacant in 1833 by the abolition of the religious orders in Portugal, it began to deteriorate to the point of almost collapsing. A cupola was later added to the southwestern tower.
On December 13, 2007, the Treaty of Lisbon was signed at the monastery, laying down the basis for the reform of the European Union.
South portal
The ornate main entrance to the monastery was designed by João de Castilho and is considered as one of the most magnificent of his time. This shrine-like portal is large, 32 m high and 12 m wide, extending up for two stories. It features, surrounded by an abundance of gables, pinnacles, many carved figures standing under a baldachin in exquisitely carved niches, around a statue of Henry the Navigator, standing on a pedestal between the two doors.
The tympanum, above the double door, displays in half-relief two scenes from the life of Saint Jerome. On the left, the removal of a thorn by St. Jerome from a lion's paw, after which the lion became his best friend. The right scene depicts the saint in the desert. The spandrel between these scenes shows the coat-of-arms of king Manuel I. The statue with the sword in the niche of the pier probably represents Henry the Navigator. Wherever one looks in the archivolt and tympanum, one sees all the elements of the Manueline style.
The Madonna of Belém stands on a pedestal on top of the archivolt, above it stands a statue of the Archangel Michael and on top of the portal stands the cross of the Order of Christ. The portal is harmoniously flanked on each side by a large window with richly decorated mouldings.
Western portal
This western portal is a good example of the transition from the Gothic style to Renaissance. It was built by Nicolau Chanterene in 1517. This was probably his first commission in Portugal. It is now spanned by a vestibule, added in the 19th century, that forms a transition between the church and the ambulatory.
The tympanum depicts the Annunciation, the Nativity, and the Epiphany. Two angels, holdings the arms of Portugal, close the archivolt. The splays on each side of the portal are filled with statues, among them king Manuel I and his second wife Maria of Aragón, kneeling in a niche under a lavishly decorated baldachin. They are flanked by their patron saints St. Jeronimos and John the Baptist.
The supporting corbels are decorated with little angels holding the coat-of-arms and, at the side of the king, an armillary sphere and, at the side of the queen, three blooming twigs
Interior
Diogo Boitac laid the foundations for this three-aisled church with five bays under a single vault, a clearly marked but only slightly projecting transept and a raised choir. The aisles and the nave are of about equal height in the manner of a hall church. Boitac built the walls of the church as far as the cornices and then started with the construction of the adjoining monastery.
João de Castilho, a Spanish architect and sculptor, continued the construction in 1517. He completed the retaining walls and the unique single-span ribbed vault, a combination of stellar vaulting and tracery vaults spanning the 19 m-wide church. Each set of ribs in the vaulting is secured by bosses. The bold design (1522) of the transversal vault of the transept lacks any piers or columns, while Boitac had originally planned three bays in the transept. The unsupported vault of the transept gives the viewer the impression as if it floats in the air.
He also ornamented the six 25m-high, slender, articulated, octagonal columns with refined grotesque or floral motives announcing the Renaissance style. The northern column closest to the transept shows a medallion that probably is a portrait of Boitac or João de Castilho.
The end result of the construction of this Late Gothic hall church is aesthetically and architecturally a masterwork. It augments the spatial effect of this vast building.
At the end of the side aisles and on both sides of the choir stand Manueline altars dating from the 16th and the 17th centuries. They are decorated with carved work in golden and green colours. One of them has a statue of St. Jerome in multi-coloured enamelled terracotta.
This chancel was ordered by Queen Catherine of Habsburg as the final resting place for the royal family. It is the work of Jerónimo de Ruão (Jean de Rouen) in Classical style. The royal tombs rest on marble elephants and are set between Ionic pillars, topped by Corinthian pillars. The tombs on the left side of the choir belong to king Manuel I and his wife Maria of Aragon, while the tombs on the right side belong to King João III and his wife Queen Catherine of Habsburg.
Within the church, close to the western portal, are the stone tombs of Vasco da Gama (1468-1523), and of the great poet and recorder of the discoveries, Luís de Camões (1527-1570). Both tombs were sculpted by the nineteenth century sculptor Costa Mota in a harmonious neo-Manueline style. The mortal remains of both were transferred to these tombs in 1880.
Monastery
Work on the vast square cloister (55 x 55 m) of the monastery was begun by Boitac. He built the groin vaults with wide arches and windows with tracery resting on delicate mullions. João de Castilho finished the construction by giving the lower storey a classical overlay and building a more recessed upper storey. The construction of such a two-storey cloister was a novelty at the time. Castilho changed the original round columns of Boitac into rectangular ones. He put Plateresque-style ornaments on it.
Each wing consists of six bays with tracery vaults. The four inner bays rest on massive buttresses, forming broad arcades. The corner bays are linked by a diagonal arched construction and show the richly decorated corner pillars.
The inside walls of the cloister have a wealth of Manueline motives with nautical ornaments, and European, Moorish ans eastern elements. The decorations on the outer walls of the inner courtyard were made in Plateresco style by Castilho. This ornamentation on the walls and the traceried arches of the arcades give the construction a filigree aspect.
The round arches and the horizontal structure are clearly in line with the Renaissance style, while at the same time there is also a relationship with Spanish architecture.
One of the arcades contains the sober tomb of the poet Fernando Pessoa. There are several tombs in the chapter house : poet and playwright Almeida Garrett (1799-1854), writer-historian Alexandre Herculano (1810-1877), president Teófilo Braga (1843-1924) and president Óscar Carmona (1869-1951). The refectory across the chapter house has several azulejos tiles from the 17th century.
The cloister had a religious function as well as a representative function by its decorative ornamentation and the dynastic symbolic motives, such as the armillarium, coat-of-arms, and the cross from the Order of Christ, showing the growing world power of Portugal.
In an extension, added to the monastery during the restoration 1850, is located the Museu Nacional de Arqueologia (National Archaeological Museum). The Museu da Marinha (Maritime Museum) is located in the west wing.
The church and the monastery, like the nearby Torre de Belém and Padrão dos Descobrimentos, symbolises the Portuguese Age of Discovery and is among the main tourist attractions of Lisbon.
Português
Museu da Marinha
pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museu_da_marinha
O Museu remonta a 1863, quando D. Luís decretou a constituição de uma colecção de testemunhos relacionados com a actividade marítima portuguesa.
Depois de passar por vários espaços, nomeadamente o palácio dos Condes de Farrobo nas Laranjeiras, em Lisboa, onde esteve de 1949 até 1962, ano em que se instalou nas alas Norte e Poente do Mosteiro dos Jerónimos. Considerado Organismo Cultural da Marinha de Guerra Portuguesa, a sua missão, mais do que relevar exclusivamente os assuntos militares navais, é salvaguardar e divulgar o passado marítimo português e tudo o que se relaciona com os mais diversos aspectos e actividades humanas no mar.
Saint Michael's (German: Sankt-Michael-Kirche) is a Roman Catholic church in Berlin, Germany, dedicated to the Archangel Michael. It is located in Mitte (former Luisenstadt), near the border between Berlin-Mitte locality and Kreuzberg. The church was built between 1851 and 1861, and also served as a garrison church for Catholic soldiers. It was heavily damaged by bombing during the Second World War and partially reconstructed in the 1950s. It is protected as a historical monument in Berlin.
SITE
Saint Michael's is located on the Michaelkirchplatz in Engelbecken, which was part of the old Luisenstadt Canal, along which the Berlin Wall ran until German reunification. After the canal's closure in 1926, the space was converted into a park, which offered an uninterrupted view of St Michael's from the south. This view was opened up after the fall of the Berlin Wall, such that the church is once more seen in the way it was originally conceived. Michaelkirchstraße runs from Michaelkirchplatz to the River Spree, crossing Köpenicker Road (de), and has existed since the sixteenth century. In the immediate neighbourhood of the church, there are also monuments set up by the Haus des Deutschen Verkehrsbunds (de) and the College of St Mary's Church.
HISTORY
DESIGN (1846–1850)
The Protestant king Frederick William IV approved the construction of a second Roman Catholic church in Berlin after the Reformation, which was originally planned mainly as a church for the military garrison. It was intended to give Catholic soldiers living in Berlin a spiritual home and ease the pressure on St. Hedwig's Cathedral.
The architect August Soller completed the original design in 1845. He planned a front facade with two towers, with Gothic elements, which he later abandoned. The plan envisioned the church would take the form of a "Zentralbau", but he later extended it into a hall church. As a result of the abandonment of the double-tower facade, the church now lacked a clearly visible profile. This could not be provided by the heavy octagonal roof planned for the cupola, so Soller substituted a domed tower, in accordance with earlier architectural models and the wishes of Frederick William IV.
CONSTRUCTION (1851–1856)
Frederick William IV had already named Michaelstraße after the Archangel Michael (in 1849 it became Michaelkirchstraße) and encouraged to the building commission's decision to place the church under the patronage of the Archangel Michael as well. On 14 July 1851, the foundation stone was laid, with the King and his family in attendance, along with church, secular, and military officials. Several thousand people lined the banks of the Engelbecken.
Construction went on from 1851 until 1861. Soller died during the construction and was buried inside in 1856. As a result of financial difficulties, construction of the church stalled for some time. The building was completed by Andreas Simons, Martin Gropius, and Soller's nephew, Richard Lucae. In 1896, the cost of the church's construction was estimated at 438,000 marks. The church was consecrated on 28 October 1861, by the Bishop of Breslau, in the presence of William I, Emperor of Germany.
MILITARY TO CIVILIAN USE
After the church's consecration in 1861, a military church area for 3,000 Catholic soldiers was established. Two years later, a local church district was added, which constantly grew until 1877. In 1888 it was promoted to a parish. With the settlement of the area around the church (which had still been wasteland when the church was begun), the parish expanded further. At its foundation, the area had 6,000 members, but by 1900 there were nearly 20,000 Roman Catholics in the parish, who were called "Michaelites."
SOCIAL CONFLICT AND ENGAGEMENT
Around 1900, the area around St michael's, with its many tenements, was a social flashpoint. On 26 February 1892 there were large scale protests and riots due to unemployment. Members of the parish banded together to form a relief society, in order to reduce the problem. Marist sisters came from Breslau in 1888 and established the Marienstift in 1909, which endured until 1995. The Marienstift had social facilities, mobile health care, a kindergarten, and accommodation for servant girls. The Blessed Domprobst Bernhard Lichtenberg, who was alter a prominent opponent of National Socialism, was chaplain at St Michael's from 1903 to 1905. The church's social engagement increased between 1917 and 1926 under Maximilian Kaller, who would also later become an opponent of the Nazis. Kaller brought members of the parish together as a lay apostolate for ensuring pastoral care.
ENGELBECKEN
When the Luisenstadt Canal was closed in 1926, it was planned for the so-called Engelbecken ("Angel's pool"), named after the church's patron, to be converted into a public swimming pool. This outraged Berlin's Catholics. With the aid of the Centre Party, the approval of the plans by the Landtag of Prussia was blocked and the Engelbecken was turned into a pond for swans, surrounded by green space.
WAR DAMAGE AND REBUILDING
In the final months of the Second World War, on 3 February 1945, the Luisenstadt was nearly entirely destroyed by air raids carried out by the USAAF with over 950 aircraft. St Michael's suffered serious damage as a result of fire bombing. The organ and the majority of the church's interior were destroyed. The outer walls, domed tower and the front of the church remained largely intact. As a result of the destruction of the roof, the dome is seen through the portal window, which is below the bell tower. Abover the Portal, there is a mosaic depicting the annunciation, which partially survived the bombing as a result of the survival of the entranceway.
Services were accordingly shifted into the Marienstift. Under Franz Kusche, the Apse, sacristry, and the transept were rebuilt and services were able to be held within the church once more in 1953. In 1957, three new bells were installed and in 1960, the new organ was consecrated after the construction of a new space for it.
DIVISION OF THE PARISH
With the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, the parish was split into an eastern and a western half. St Michael's fell on the eastern side of the wall, so the Catholics of West Berlin erected their own Church of St. Michael (de) on Waldemarstraße (Alfred-Döblin-Platz), immediately beyond the wall. This Western Church was designed by Rudolf Schwarz, who died in 1961; it was one of his last buildings. It was intended that the building would be able to serve as a church hall in the event of German Reunification. The centennial of St Michael's dedication was celebrated in October 1961.
During this period of separation, the two parts of the parish developed in very different ways. By the 1980s, the western part of the parish had expanded in Kreuzberg and become more focussed on youth, while the eastern part of the parish continued to employ traditional liturgy and services. This division continued after German Reunification and St. Michael's in the east now belongs to the parish of St. Hedwig's Cathedral, while the western part of the parish belongs to the parish of St. Mary's (de).
In 1978, the Church was given heritage status. From 1978 to 1980, the copper of the dome was replaced, the brickwork was repaired, and the new crucifix was remounted. In 1984, the parish house was moved from Michaelkirchstraße to a new parish house which was built in the ruins of the church between 1985 and 1988.
A clear view of St Michael's from the Oranienplatz was not possible between 1961 and 1990, because of the Berlin Wall. The lower half of the church, which could not be seen because of the concrete segments of the wall, was painted on the western part of the wall, as Trompe-l'œil, by the Berlin-based, Iranian artist Yadegar Asisi on the initiative of Berlin architect Bernhard Strecker, in order to demonstrate the "permeability" of the wall (Mauerdurchblick). After the demolition of the wall, the Italian Marco Piccininni bought painted segments of the wall found near Waldemarbrücke n an auction at Monte Carlo in 1990, which he subsequently donated to the Vatican, where they were installed in the Vatican Gardens in August 1994. Other graffiti on the Berlin Wall along Waldemarstraße is documented in ten connected poster-photos taken by photographers Liselotte and Armin Orgel-Köhne in 1985.
AFTER REUNIFICATION
After the Fall of the Berlin Wall, the Bell tower was refurbished and the statue of Michael was restored and returned to the tower (1991-1993). The mosaic depicting the Annunciation above the portal was restored again in 1999. Even now, however, the nave has no roof and services are held in the transepts. On 7 March 2001, the Association of Friends for the Protection of the Catholic Church of St Michael's of Berlin-Mitte was founded, to upport activities connected with the church.
On 31 October 2003, Archbishop Georg Sterzinsky decided to merge the parish of St Michael, which at that point had only 800 members, into the neighbouring parish of St Hedwig's Cathedral. Thus the church is no longer a parish church, although religious services continue to take place in it.
In August 2005, plans were revealed for the restoration of the nave and the installation of a Centre Against Expulsions in it from Autumn 2006. On 15 August 2005, the Archbishop made a statement saying that the church's agreement with the Federation of Expellees had been cancelled, "on account of a lack of community agreement with the installation of the centre in a church."
STRUCTURE
EXTERIOR
The three-aisled brick nave is 55 metres long, 30 metres high, and 19 metres wide. The church is topped by a tower over the crossing with a copper dome, which is over 56 metres high. On the corner columns of the crossing, there were statues of the Four Evangelists on high pedestals, before the church's damage during the Second World War.
The front facade has a bell tower with three round vaulted windows, but no towers. The statue of St Michael on the front facade is a replica of a statue made by the sculptor August Kiß for another purpose. The whole exterior is decorated with buttresses, friezes, and statues, as well as multi-coloured pricks.
INTERIOR
The church is a hall church, i.e. the three aisles of the nave were all of the same height (before they were destroyed in the war). The architect, Soller, originally planned the church as a "Zentralbau" (i.e. a building with rotational symmetry). He adapted this idea into a basilica structure, roofing each bay so that they appeared as a series of "Zentralbauten" arranged one after another.
The three aisles each end in an apse, as in Romanesque architecture. The two side apses used to contain altars dedicated to Mary and Joseph. The central apse, there is an image of the Archangel Michael locked in combat with Lucifer in the form of a dragon atop the high altar; the half-dome of the apse's ceiling contains a depiction of Jesus as Pantokrator.
Not all the decorations and images of the interior were restored during the post-war renovations. The original organ, now lost, was located in the matroneum above the main entrance. The pulpit is located on an eastern pillar of the crossing. There is also a tabernacle with a marble image of the Madonna on the altar, made by sculptor Heinrich Pohlmann.
The transept is roofed by a barrel vault. After the partial destruction of the church, services were moved to the transept and as a result the eastern side entrance is now the main entrance to the church. The current organ is located in a new matroneum above the eastern entrance. This organ was made in 1960 by the W. Sauer Orgelbau Frankfurt company.
The west end of the transept now serves as the Choir and contains the altar. A two-level flat roof has been installed in the nave, which extends to the final columns before the transept. The rest of the old nave has been converted into a garden.
ARCHITECTURAL STYLE
The church is considered a successful synthesis of Neoclassical and Medieval architecture. Soller drew on earlier architectural styles in a historicist manner. It is strongly influenced by Medieval and Renaissance churches of Padua and Venice. Soller had taken a five-month research trip through Italy in 1845, immediately before his first design work. The interaction between the water and architecture in Vencie was a particular inspiration. The facade with its filigree angels was based on San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice. The overall design, with its three apses and the vast nave is, however, heavily influenced by the church of San Salvador, Venice. The combination of the "Zentralbau" and hall church structures had a significant influence on several subsequent buildings of the Schinkel school in Berlin.
WIKIPEDIA
Dedicated to the boys from South Carolina for their action at the Crater in Petersburg.
Petersburg, Virginia.
Fred takes great photos but he says he needs a new girlfriend to get him out these days, and Rebecca is looking for a good working man...
More from our Trash the Dress outing last Monday. She wanted a grunge look...
It was great when it all began.....
I think it was September 2011 when I first visited St Olave. It was an Open House London weekend, and I had not been inside a City of London church before. I was soon to discover this was one of many.
I think since then I have photographed inside and/or inside, or the remains of some 48 City Churches, but this is still something special.
A Norfolk Village church in the City I have heard it described, it is certainly a box of delights, with a whole lot of interesting things, memorials and even a model of a lightship inside.
It nestles down a quiet street near to Fenchurch Street, and seems to be open whenever I walk by. This time I entered through the door on the street, much better to enter through the churchyard, through the macabre gate then down steps into the porch.
Once inside I saw someone asleep in the pews, surrounded by bags of her possessions. I tried not to wake her.
And yet, the church was filled with strong sunlight, tinted after passing through the stained glass.
------------------------------------------
St Olave’s survives as a rare example of the mediaeval churches that existed before the Great Fire of London in 1666. The flames came within 100 metres or so of the building but then the wind changed direction, saving a number of churches on the eastern side of the City.
The church was severely damaged in the bombing of World War II, but enough of the fabric and original masonry was spared to permit the building to be lovingly restored in the 1950s and to continue its life and work into the second half of the 20th century and now the 21st.
People entering St Olave’s for the first time are frequently surprised to find the timeless atmosphere of a modest ancient parish church in the heart of the modern City and this surprise more often than not yields to increasing delight as they explore its interior. This truth about St Olave’s was well expressed by The Revd Augustus Powell Miller, the Rector who saw through the post-war restoration:
'Often we remind ourselves that we are the heirs of nine centuries of Christian worship on this hallowed site. For all those long years… the praises of God and the prayers of His people have been ascending to the Throne of grace from this place. The very mental and spiritual atmosphere which you breathe as you step out of Hart Street into this Sanctuary has been gradually created by the worshippers of the past. And many times in recent days when visitors have come in to see the restored church they have confessed to having paused; they entered to view what the craftsmen had wrought but had to own their consciousness of its hallowed atmosphere. "Other men have laboured" and we, in the mercy of God have been given the privilege of "entering into their labours." In the quiet and silence of this Sanctuary we can know that "we are compassed about with a great cloud of witnesses," and that the past mingles with the present and can inspire us for whatever tasks the future has in store for us.'
www.sanctuaryinthecity.net/history-architecture/4588220829
--------------------------------------------
St Olave Hart Street is a Church of England church in the City of London, located on the corner of Hart Street and Seething Lane near Fenchurch Street railway station.
John Betjeman described St Olave's as "a country church in the world of Seething Lane."[1] The church is one of the smallest in the City and is one of only a handful of medieval City churches that escaped the Great Fire of London in 1666.[2] In addition to being a local parish church, St Olave's is the Ward Church of the Tower Ward of the City of London.
The church is first recorded in the 13th century as St Olave-towards-the-Tower, a stone building replacing the earlier (presumably wooden) construction.[4] It is dedicated to the patron saint of Norway, King Olaf II of Norway, who fought alongside the Anglo-Saxon King Ethelred the Unready against the Danes in the Battle of London Bridge in 1014. He was canonised after his death and the church of St Olave's was built apparently on the site of the battle.[2] The Norwegian connection was reinforced during the Second World War when King Haakon VII of Norway worshipped there while in exile.
Saint Olave's was rebuilt in the 13th century and then again in the 15th century. The present building dates from around 1450. According to John Stow's Survey of London (1603), a major benefactor of the church in the late 15th century was wool merchant Richard Cely Sr. (d. 1482), who held the advowson on the church (inherited by his son, Richard Cely, Jr.). On his death, Cely bequeathed money for making the steeple and an altar in the church. The merchant mark of the Cely family was carved in two of the corbels in the nave (and were extant until the bombing of World War II). No memorial to the Celys now remains in the church.[5]
Saint Olave's survived the Great Fire of London with the help of Sir William Penn, the father of the more famous William Penn who founded Pennsylvania, and his men from the nearby Naval yards. He had ordered the men to blow up the houses surrounding the church to create a fire break.[6][7] The flames came within 100 yards or so of the building, but then the wind changed direction, saving the church and a number of other churches on the eastern side of the City.[3]
The church was a favourite of the diarist Samuel Pepys, whose house and Royal Navy office were both on Seething Lane. A regular worshipper, he referred to St. Olave's in his diary affectionately as "our own church"[8] In 1660, he had a gallery built on the south wall of the church and added an outside stairway from the Royal Navy Offices so that he could go to church without getting soaked by the rain. The gallery is now gone but a memorial to Pepys marks the location of the stairway's door. In 1669, when his beloved wife Elisabeth died from fever,[9] Pepys had a marble bust of her made by John Bushnell and installed on the north wall of the sanctuary so that he would be able to see her from his pew at the services. In 1703, he was buried next to his wife in the nave.[2][10]
However, it was gutted by German bombs in 1941 during the London Blitz.[11] and was restored in 1954, with King Haakon VII of Norway returning to preside over the rededication ceremony, during which he laid a stone from Trondheim Cathedral in front of the sanctuary.
Between 1948 and 1954, when the restored St Olave's was reopened, a prefabricated church stood on the site of All Hallows Staining. This was known as St Olave Mark Lane. The tower of All Hallows Staining was used as the chancel of the temporary church.
The church was designated a Grade I listed building on 4 January 1950.[12] St Olave's has retained long and historic links with Trinity House and the Clothworkers' Company.
St Olave's has a modest exterior in the Perpendicular Gothic style.[1] with a somewhat squat square tower of stone and brick, the latter added in 1732. It is famous for the macabre 1658 entrance arch to the churchyard, which is decorated with grinning skulls.[13] The novelist Charles Dickens was so taken with this that he included the church in his Uncommercial Traveller, renaming it "St Ghastly Grim".[14]
The interior of St Olave's only partially survived the wartime bombing; much of it dates from the restoration of the 1950s. It is nearly square, with three bays separated by columns of Purbeck limestone supporting pointed arches. The roof is a simple oak structure with bosses. Most of the church fittings are modern, but there are some significant survivals, such as the monument to Elizabeth Pepys[15] and the pulpit, said to be the work of Grinling Gibbons. Following the destruction of the organ in the blitz, the John Compton Organ Company built a new instrument in the West Gallery, fronted by a large wooden grille; this organ, and the Rectory behind, is ingeniously structured between church and tower.
In the tower, there is a memorial with an American connection. It honors Monkhouse Davison and Abraham Newman, the grocers of Fenchurch Street who shipped crates of tea to Boston in late 1773. These crates were seized and thrown into the waters during the Boston Tea Party, one of the causes of the American War of Independence.[10]
Perhaps the oddest "person" said to be buried here is the "Pantomime character" Mother Goose. Her burial was recorded by the parish registers on 14 September 1586.[16] A plaque on the outside commemorates this event. The churchyard is also said to contain the grave of one Mary Ramsay, popularly believed to be the woman who brought the Plague to London in 1665.[17] The parish registers have the record of her burial, which was on 24 July 1665. Thereafter, in the same year, the victims of the Great Plague were marked with a 'p' after their names in the registers.
On the east side of St Olave's, there is a stained glass window depicting Queen Elizabeth I standing with two tall bells at her feet. She held a thanksgiving service at St Olave's on Trinity Sunday, 15 May 1554, while she was still Princess Elizabeth, to celebrate her release from the Tower of London.[19] She had originally given bell-ropes of silk to the All Hallows Staining Church because its bells had rung the loudest of all London bells on the day of her freedom, but, when All Hallows Staining was merged with St. Olave's in 1870, the bell-ropes went with it.[20]
On 11 May 1941, an incendiary bomb was dropped by the Luftwaffe on the tower of the church. The tower, along with the baptistry and other buildings, was "burned out" and the furnishings and monuments destroyed. The heat was so great that even the peal of the eight bells were melted "back into bell metal". In the early 1950s, the bell metal was recast into new bells by the same foundry that created the original bells – the Whitechapel Bell Foundry, in 1662 and 1694.[21] The new bells were then hung in the rebuilt tower.
There are currently nine bells at St Olave's Hart Street consisting of one sanctus bell and eight bells hung for full circle ringing, with the tenor of the eight weighing 11-3-23.[22] The bells are usually rung for practices, which take place on Thursday evenings between 7:00pm and 8:30pm during term time, and for Sunday service between 10:15am and 11:00am on the 1st and 3rd Sundays in the month.[23] The bells are currently rung by the University of London Society of Change Ringers (ULSCR) who have a healthy band consisting of past and present members of London Universities.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Olave_Hart_Street
--------------------------------------------
A medieval church set in the surprisingly quiet and narrow streets near Fenchurch Street station. One of the most pleasing of the City of London churches, both in its setting and in its interior. It was far enough east to escape the ravages of the Great Fire, much to the relief of Samuel Pepys, whose parish church this was and who worked in the Navy Office next door. In the 1930s Betjeman described it as seeming like an East Anglian country parish church on holiday in the heart of the City. The church did not, alas, survive the Blitz similarly unscathed, but the exterior and setting today appear remarkably similar to postcards and photographs of the 1920s, set on the corner of Hart Street and Seething Lane with a polite little public garden behind. Don't miss the grinning skulls above the gateway.
Since the terrorist bombing of St Ethelburga in 1993, St Olave is the smallest surviving intact medieval church in the City. The interior has been carefully restored and perhaps retains something of its original atmosphere - indeed, the post-war restoration got rid of the worst of the middle-brow 19th Century restorations by Arthur Blomfield and Ewan Christian. Furnishings were brought out of store from All Hallows Staining and St Katherine Coleman, two churches in adjacent streets which had been demolished for building work in the 19th Century. The glass is now all post-war and by two artists whose reputations for fine work are firmly established, Arthur Buss and John Hayward.
#46/100 for 100 Flowers 2018 and #26/100 for 100 x: The 2018 Edition - my X is macro with a dedicated macro lens. (_D758286)
Bindhyabasini, one of the oldest temples in the Pokhara valley, has an immense cultural value. The temple is dedicated to Goddess Bhagawati. Bhagavati is a popular deity - also in the Indian states of Kerala, Goa and Konkan. It can be used to refer any of the Hindu goddesses like Durga, Kannaki, Parvati, Saraswati, Lakshmi, and Kali. In Goa, Bhagavati generally refers to the Mahishasurmardini form of Shakti.
Bindhyabasini is considered as one of the main and foremost Shaktipiths of western Nepal. Situated at a small hill-lock in between the main old market and Bagar it is at a height of 3000 ft. above from the sea level.
Pokhara (Nepali: पोखरा) is the second largest city of Nepal after Kathmandu. It is the headquarters of Kaski District, Gandaki Zone and the Western Development Region. It lies 200 km west of Kathmandu; its altitude varies from 780 m to 1350 m. Three out of the ten highest mountains in the world — Dhaulagiri, Annapurna I and Manaslu — are within a linear distance of 50 km from the city. Due to its proximity to the Annapurna mountain range, the city is also a base for trekkers undertaking the Annapurna Circuit through the ACAP region of the Annapurna ranges in the Himalayas.
Pokhara is home to many Gurkha soldiers. It is the most expensive city in the country, with a Cost of Living Index of 95.
GEOGRAPHY
Pokhara is in the northwestern corner of the Pokhara Valley, which is a widening of the Seti Gandaki valley that lies in the midland region (Pahad) of the Himalayas. In this region the mountains rise very quickly and within 30 km, the elevation rises from 1,000 m to over 7,500 m. As a result of this sharp rise in altitude the area of Pokhara has one of the highest precipitation rates in the country (3,350 mm/year to 5600 mm/year in Lumle). Even within the city there is a noticeable difference in rainfall between the south and the north of the city, the northern part of the city situated at the foothills of the mountains experiences proportionally higher amount of precipitation. The Seti Gandaki is the main river flowing through the city. The Seti Gandaki (White River) and its tributaries have created several gorges and canyons in and around the whole city which gives intriguingly long sections of terrace features to the city and surrounding areas. These long sections of terraces are interrupted by gorges which are hundreds of meters deep. The Seti gorge runs through the whole city from north to south and then west to east and at places these gorges are only a few metres wide. In the north and south, the canyons are wider.n the south the city borders on Phewa Tal (4.4 km2) at an elevation of about 827 m above sea level, and Lumle at 1,740 m in the north of the city touches the base of the Annapurna mountain range. Pokhara, the city of lakes, is the second largest city of Nepal after Kathmandu. 3 eight-thousand meter tall peaks (Dhaulagiri, Annapurna, Manaslu) can be seen from the city. The Machhapuchhre (Fishtail) with an elevation of 6,993 m is the closest to the city. The porous underground of the Pokhara valley favours the formation of caves and several caves can be found within the city limits. In the south of the city, a tributary of the Seti flowing out of the Phewa Lake disappears at Patale Chhango (पाताले छाँगो, Nepali for Hell's Falls, also called Davis Falls, after someone who supposedly fell into the falls) into an underground gorge, to reappear 500 metres further south. To the south-east of Pokhara city is the municipality of Lekhnath, a recently established town in the Pokhara valley, home to Begnas Lake.
CLIMATE
The climate of the city is sub-tropical; however, the elevation keeps temperatures moderate. Summer temperatures average between 25 to 33 °C, in winter around - 2 to 15 °C. Pokhara and nearby areas receive a high amount of precipitation. Lumle, 25 miles from the Pokhara city center, receives the highest amount of rainfall (> 5600 mm/year) in the country. Snowfall is not observed in the valley, but surrounding hills experience occasional snowfall in the winter. Summers are humid and mild; most precipitation occurs during the monsoon season (July - September). Winter and spring skies are generally clear and sunny.
HISTORY
Pokhara lies on an important old trading route between China and India. In the 17th century it was part of the Kingdom of Kaski which was one of the Chaubise Rajya (24 Kingdoms of Nepal, चौबिसे राज्य) ruled by a branch of the Shah Dynasty. Many of the hills around Pokhara still have medieval ruins from this time. In 1786 Prithvi Narayan Shah added Pokhara into his kingdom. It had by then become an important trading place on the routes from Kathmandu to Jumla and from India to Tibet.Pokhara was envisioned as a commercial center by the King of Kaski in the mid 18th century A.D. when Newars of Bhaktapur migrated to Pokhara, upon being invited by the king, and settled near main business locations such as Bindhyabasini temple, Nalakomukh and Bhairab Tole. Most of the Pokhara, at the time, was largely inhabited by Khas (Brahmin, Chhetri, Thakuri and Dalits), the major communities were located in Parsyang, Malepatan, Pardi and Harichowk areas of modern Pokhara and the Majhi community near the Phewa Lake. The establishment of a British recruitment camp brought larger Magar and Gurung communities to Pokhara. At present the Khas, Gurung (Tamu) and Magar form the dominant community of Pokhara. There is also a sizeable Newari population in the city. A small Muslim community is located on eastern fringes of Pokhara generally called Miya Patan. Batulechaur in the far north of Pokhara is home to the Gandharvas or Gaaineys (the tribe of the musicians).
The nearby hill villages around Pokhara are a mixed community of Khas and Gurung. Small Magar communities are also present mostly in the southern outlying hills. Newar community is almost non-existent in the villages of outlying hills outside the Pokhara city limits.
From 1959 to 1962 approximately 300,000 exiles entered Nepal from neighbouring Tibet following its annexation by China. Most of the Tibetan exiles then sought asylum in Dharamshala and other Tibetan exile communities in India. According to UNHCR, since 1989, approximately 2500 Tibetans cross the border into Nepal each year, many of whom arrive in Pokhara typically as a transit to Tibetan exile communities in India. About 50,000 - 60,000 Tibetan exiles reside in Nepal, and approximately 20,000 of the exiled Tibetans live in one of the 12 consolidated camps, 8 in Kathmandu and 4 in and around Pokhara. The four Tibetan settlements in Pokhara are Jampaling, Paljorling, Tashi Ling, and Tashi Palkhel. These camps have evolved into well built settlements, each with a gompa (Buddhist monastery), chorten and its particular architecture, and Tibetans have become a visible minority in the city.
Until the end of the 1960s the town was only accessible by foot and it was considered even more a mystical place than Kathmandu. The first road was completed in 1968 (Siddhartha Highway) after which tourism set in and the city grew rapidly. The area along the Phewa lake, called Lake Side, has developed into one of the major tourism hubs of Nepal.
TEMPLES, GUMBAS AND CHURCHES
There are numerous temples and gumbas in and around pokhara valley. Many temples serve as combined places of worship for Hindus and Buddhists. Some of the popular temples and gumbas are:
Tal Barahi Temple (located on the island in the middle of Phewa Lake)
Bindhyabasini Temple
Sitaladevi Temple
Mudula Karki Kulayan Mandir
Sunpadeli Temple (Kaseri)
Bhadrakali Temple
Kumari Temple
Akalaa Temple
Kedareshwar Mahadev Mani Temple
Matepani Gumba
World peace pagoda
Akaladevi Temple
Monastery (Hemja)
Nepal Christiya Ramghat Church, established in 1952 (2009 BS), in Ramghat area of Pokhara is also the first church in Nepal.
LOCATION
The municipality of Pokhara spans 12 km from north to south and 6 km from east to west but, unlike the capital Kathmandu, it is quite loosely built up and still has much green space. The valley is approximately divided into four to Six parts by the rivers Seti, Bijayapur, Bagadi, Fusre and Hemja. The Seti Gandaki flowing through the city from north to south divides the city roughly in two halves with the business area of Chipledunga in the middle, the old town centre of Bagar in the north and the tourist district of Lakeside (Baidam) to the south all lying on the western side of the river.[38] The gorge through which the river flows is crossed at five places: K.I. Singh Pul, Mahendra Pul and Prithvi Highway Pul from north to south of the city. The floor of the valley is plain, resembles Terai due to its gravel-like surface, and has slanted orientation from northwest to southeast. The city is surrounded by the hills overlooking the entire valley.
Phewa Lake was slightly enlarged by damming which poses a risk of silting up due of the inflow during the monsoon. The outflowing water is partially used for hydropower generation. The dam collapsed in 1974 which resulted in draining of its water and exposing the land leading to illegal land encroachment; since then the dam has been rebuilt. The power plant is about 100 m below at the bottom of the Phusre Khola gorge. Water from Phewa is diverted for irrigation into the southern Pokhara valley. The eastern Pokhara Valley receives irrigation water through a canal running from a reservoir by the Seti in the north of the city. Some parts of Phewa lake are used as commercial cage fisheries. The lake is currently being encroached upon by invasive water hyacinth (जलकुम्भी झार).
Pokhara is known to be a popular tourist destination. The tourist district is along the north shore of the Phewa lake (Baidam, Lakeside and Damside). It is mainly made up of small shops, non-star tourist hotels, restaurants and bars. Most upscale and starred hotels are on the southern shore of the Phewa Lake and southeastern fringes of the city where there are more open lands and unhindered view of the surrounding mountains. Most of the tourists visiting Pokhara trek to the Annapurna Base Camp and Mustang. To the east of the Pokhara valley, in Lekhnath municipality, there are seven smaller lakes such as Begnas Lake and Rupa Lake. Begnas Lake is known for its fishery projects.
TOURISM AND ECONOMY
After the occupation of Tibet by China in 1950 and the Indo-China war in 1962, the old trading route to India from Tibet through Pokhara became defunct. Today only few caravans from Mustang arrive in Bagar. In recent decades, Pokhara has become a major tourist destination, it is considered as tourism capital of Nepal. In South Asia mainly for adventure tourism and the base for the famous Annapurna Circuit trek. Thus, a major contribution to the local economy comes from the tourism and hospitality industry. A lot of tourists visit Pokhara every year. Tourism industry is one of major source of income for local people and the city. There are two 5-star hotels and approximately 305 other hotels that includes five 3-star, fifteen 2-star and non-star hotels in the city.
Many medieval era temples (Barahi temple, Bindhyabasini, Bhadrakali, Talbarahi, Guheshwori, Sitaldevi, Gita mandir temple, Bhimsen temple) and old Newari houses are still a part of the city (Bagar, Bindhyabasini, Bhadrakali, Bhairab Tol, etc.). The modern commercial city centres are at Chipledhunga, New Road, Prithvi Chowk and Mahendrapul (recently renamed as Bhimsen Chowk).
The city promotes two major hilltops as its viewpoints to view the city and surrounding panorama, World Peace Pagoda built in 1996 across the southern shore of Phewa lake and Sarangkot which is located northwest of the city. In February 2004, International Mountain Museum (IMM) was opened for public in Ratopahiro to boost city's tourism attractions. Other museums in the city are Pokhara Regional Museum, an ethnographic museum, Annapurna Natural History Museum which houses preserved specimens of flora and fauna, and contains particularly extensive collection of the butterflies, found in the Western and ACAP region of Nepal; and Gurkha Museum featuring history of the Gurkha Soldiers. The city also has recently been adorned with a bungee jumping site (second in Nepal) titled Water Touch Bunjee Jumping. Also, a cable car service has begun construction joining Fewa Lake with World Peace Stupa led by the government of Nepal which is expected to boost the tourism industry of the place exponentially.
Since the 1990s Pokhara has experienced rapid urbanization, as a result service sector industries have increasingly contributed to the local economy overtaking the traditional agriculture. An effect of urbanization is seen in high real estate prices, which among the highest in the country. The major contributors to the economy of Pokhara are manufacturing and service sector including tourism; agriculture and the foreign and domestic remittances. Tourism, service sector & manufacturing contributes approximately 58% to the economy, remittances about 20% and the agriculture nearly 16%.
WIKIPEDIA
A rising local hockey player is putting his face on the push for mental health awareness.
Sixteen-year-old Myles Mattila, who plays for the Okanagan Rockets major midgets, became an advocate for the issue because of two events: when he didn't know how to help a teammate, and the death of Vancouver Canucks’ star Rick Rypien.
Now, he's become a champion for the Canadian Mental Health Association's Ride Don’t Hide community bike ride on June 21.
Mattila quickly discovered how much fear and misunderstanding exists about mental illness.
Before moving from Prince George to Kelowna to join the Rockets, Mattila became the Northern B.C. representative for Mindcheck.ca, a website dedicated to providing mental health resources to young people. He also told his story at the Balancing Our Minds mental health summit at Rogers Arena in February.
“Mental health affects everyone, no matter what age we are, and youth are no exception. In fact, often times young people struggle to deal with the emotional and mental challenges that impact us on a daily basis,” he says. “We can all try to make a difference ... (and) show everyone that it’s OK to talk about mental illness.”
CMHA Kelowna is asking young people like Mattila to make the Get Loud pledge. For every young person who makes the pledge to speak up, the Thomas Alan Budd Foundation will donate $1, to a maximum of $5,000. The pledge can be found at www.cmhakelowna.org and at area schools.
“I’ve been a supporter of CMHA’s Ride Don’t Hide fundraiser in the past, but this year’s ride has special meaning for our family,” says Tom Budd. “This Father’s Day, I’m dedicating my ride to the memory of my son, and I want to invite every parent to bring their kids out ... and help us reach people, especially our youth.
“All communities would benefit from increase awareness and reduction of the shame around mental illness.”
In any given year, one in five Canadians, or approximately seven million Canadians, experience a mental health problem or illness, but only one third will seek help – often due to the stigma around mental illness.
Ride Don’t Hide takes place in 27 communities across Canada, and CMHA is expecting more than 6,000 cyclists to join in across the country.
The ride in Kelowna includes the 40-kilometre Dillon Budd Memorial Ride and a seven-km family/beginner route through downtown, with on-site family-friendly activities and events.
It goes from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., starting from the Rotary Centre for the Arts, and is open to cyclists of all ages and skill levels. Registration and donations can be made online at www.ridedonthide.com.
BUDD, Payton Leigh
June 9, 1998 - April 30, 2017
It is with profound sadness that we announce the sudden passing of our son, our brother, our friend on Sunday, April 30, 2017 at the age of 18. His loss will be forever felt by his father Thomas Budd, mother Annette Toro- Huber, step father Harold Huber, step siblings: Wyatt, Laura and Jessica Huber; grandfather Alan Budd; Aunt Cheryl (Wayne) Gellhaus; Uncle George (Carol) Budd and extended family and friends. Payton was predeceased by his brother Dillon. He had many passions and interests: his love for his dog Gracie, basketball and just hanging out with his friends. Payton was a charismatic young man with a gentle soul, whose infectious laugh could be heard after one of his many pranks. We will miss him forever and will continue to keep him in our hearts. A Memorial Service will be held on Sunday May 7, 2017 at 2:00 pm, at St. Andrew's Anglican Church, 4619 Lakeshore Road with Reverend Anne Privett officiating. Celebration of Life to follow for Payton's friends and their families in Payton's backyard, 4594 Fuller Road. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Andrew's Anglican Church towards the Memorial Gardens to honour Dillon and Payton Budd. Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.springfieldfuneralhome.com, 250-860-7077.
BUDD, Payton Leigh
June 9, 1998 - April 30, 2017
It is with profound sadness that we announce the sudden passing of our son, our brother, our friend on Sunday, April 30, 2017 at the age of 18. His loss will be forever felt by his father Thomas Budd, mother Annette Toro- Huber, step father Harold Huber, step siblings: Wyatt, Laura and Jessica Huber; grandfather Alan Budd; Aunt Cheryl (Wayne) Gellhaus; Uncle George (Carol) Budd and extended family and friends. Payton was predeceased by his brother Dillon. He had many passions and interests: his love for his dog Gracie, basketball and just hanging out with his friends. Payton was a charismatic young man with a gentle soul, whose infectious laugh could be heard after one of his many pranks. We will miss him forever and will continue to keep him in our hearts. A Memorial Service will be held on Sunday May 7, 2017 at 2:00 pm, at St. Andrew's Anglican Church, 4619 Lakeshore Road with Reverend Anne Privett officiating. Celebration of Life to follow for Payton's friends and their families in Payton's backyard, 4594 Fuller Road. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Andrew's Anglican Church towards the Memorial Gardens to honour Dillon and Payton Budd. Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.springfieldfuneralhome.com, 250-860-7077.
These pictures are dedicated to my “make-up” day that I stole from southern Gansu earlier in the week. As mentioned in the Singing Sand post, I was having breakfast at Charley Johng’s on Wednesday morning and talking with the owner who recommended this day trip.
It started at 8:00 a.m. on a coach that picked me up outside her restaurant (before proceeding to a hotel to fill out the rest of the 45 seats). I wasn’t the only foreigner, but I was the only one who didn’t look Chinese (or speak fluent Mandarin). I met some friendly Chinese who were living in Vancouver, and some Hong Kong folks (who are Chinese, but they most certainly distinguish from mainlanders…and most foreigners understand why).
So, off we went on our sojourn with six or seven stops. We drove west through the aforementioned “real” Dunhuang for about 15-20 minutes before the mountains and desert landscape began to resume control.
Our first stop, less than half an hour out of town, was “Old Dunhuang.” Really, they mean to say, “Old Fake Dunhuang,” but I jest. It’s…an area that shoots as a television studio when someone wants to shoot things that look like the Old West, Chinese style. For the bargain price of 40 RMB (about $7 in the current market on 1/10/16), you get to wander around this fairly decent-sized fake fort with fake everything inside…and a random prop jet inside…and, outside, the backdrop of both mountainous sand dunes and snow-capped mountains off in the distance. All in all, it was a rather unique setting – at least one I’d never experienced before.
After 40 minutes there (not 35, not 45, but 40…per Mr. Coach Driver), we all climbed back aboard and headed a little farther west to what I think they call the “Western Caves.” This is a repository of Buddhist art in grottoes west of town, but since the world-famous Mogao Grottoes are nearby (and also in my personal plan for tomorrow morning), I didn’t feel particularly inspired to spend the very cheap and fair price of 15 RMB to see a few pieces of art. In retrospect, perhaps I should have, but who knows? I may be back this way again someday. I did spend my time at the Western Caves enjoying the panoramic view of the same snow-capped mountains and desert from Old Dunhuang with the juxtaposition of this particular oasis (which is apparently why this grotto/temple was built here in the first place).
A few minutes later, we kept making our way west towards Xinjiang. At some point just west of Dunhuang, the old Silk Road split into a northern and southern route. One of the first mountain passes (and forts, where we were heading) along the southern route is Yangguan. This place was particularly enjoyable for me. Having been to quite a few sections of the Great Wall (and very much looking forward to the westernmost terminal of the Ming Dynasty Great Wall here in Gansu a few days later), I’m very much accustomed to these historical reproductions…and really love when I find some “real” history; the authentic walls and posts, though 500 years later, are just weather-worn rock.
Yangguan had a very nice mix of both the fake and the real. For 60 RMB (roughly $9), we had access to the completely remade fort with its bastions, gift shops, museum (a very nice one, admittedly), and what not. Out the back of the fort, and about a mile in the distance on a hill, is the original: one of the watchtowers that helped guard travelers for centuries along the Silk Road. To get there, you can walk, take golf carts on steroids (the kind you find at zoos that carry about 12-15 people), or rent a horse. Since I’d ridden a camel the day before and have ridden horses quite a few times, I went the lazy way…and got chauffeured up the hill. The watchtower itself is fenced off – and rightfully so – but, right next to it is a fantastic place to take in the surrounding landscape, with views of the mountains about 50 kilometers off. After a delightful two hours or so at Yangguan, we had lunch as a group at a Chinese restaurant near the fort. (It’s fun to eat with Chinese; the whole table of six, eight, or ten people just order random dishes of food. Everyone gets a bowl of rice then it’s a mini-buffet with your chopsticks from then on out.)
After being well-fed for about $3, we boarded the iron stallion and headed back down to the main road, then back east about 5 kilometers to the only road that turned off this western highway. The only point, it seems, of this side road is to go to Jade Pass (which follows the northern route of the Silk Road about 30 km down and, beyond that another 70-80 kilometers, it ends at Yadan National Park.
First stop down the über-long spur road: Jade Pass. To get there, all vehicles have to pass through a random checkpoint about 20 minutes down the road. Aside from that, it almost feels like you leave planet earth. I have never seen a flatter, more desolate landscape anywhere in my life. I almost imagine it’s what the lunar surface would feel like, with the exception of having a different atmosphere, gravitational pull, and what have you. Anyway, you catch my drift…
Jade Pass is beautiful landscape, minus the fort that you find at Yangguan Pass. The watchtower is in much better shape than those you find at Yangguan. But, unlike Yangguan, where they take better care of the watchtowers, over here at Jade Pass, you find plenty of pea-brained tourists ignoring signs (and fences) and climbing all over the watchtower as if it were a jungle gym. It’s times like these that it’s probably good my Mandarin is so poor. I would probably manage to somehow get myself deported, ironically, for yelling at idiots when I’m frustrated that they have no concept of conserving their own heritage. Running away from idiots as quickly as possible, I snapped a few pictures of the scenery…where more buffoons were blatantly ignoring signs and going where they oughtn’t. So, I cut my time at Jade Pass short and returned to the bus, which was waiting next to what looked to be a promising museum that we didn’t have the time to visit. We were apparently on a pretty tight schedule now.
Boarding the bus, we went a whole five minutes farther north for a stop to see the Han Dynasty Great Wall. Now, a few things to know. When people mention the “Great Wall” of China, it’s actually a series of walls that form a patchwork length that crosses from Shanhaiguan at the eastern terminal (ending famously in the sea), though there is a section in Liaoning province called Hushan that borders North Korea that I’ve been to and claims that it is the rightful eastern terminus of the wall. The western terminus of that wall is nearby (relatively speaking) at Jiayuguan here in Gansu province. The whole patchwork nature of that wall is emphasized by sections like Hushan. I only mention it now because the Great Wall of China refers to the Ming Dynasty wall…mostly built between 1368-1644 (with some sections marginally older, like Juyongguan, which dates to the Yuan Dynasty, immediately before the Ming).
The Han Dynasty wall out here dates to the original dynasty of China…in the 3rd century BC. So the wall here, while not as impressive as the rebuilt Ming sections of the wall in terms of visual appearance floored me because it’s original and almost 2,500 years old. The way the wall here was built (mud, adobe, etc.) is completely different than the Ming wall that came 1,500 years later. It’s shorter – in length (obviously) and height, but much longer in history. There is so little of this wall left here, though, that it would never be worth visiting on its own…or possible. Ten to fifteen minutes here is more than enough to get the “wall experience.”
From there, we were on to the ultimate destination of the day: Yadan National Park. I also discovered the reason we were on such a tight schedule. Yadan National Park is a very large park. Though this is lost in translation, I think the Chinese market it as sort of an “out of this world” experience, though I could be way off base. In reality, this used to be a seabed tens of thousands of years ago and the rock formations that are left here are the remnants of harder rocks that didn’t erode as quickly over time…which gives this park its current appearance.
Yadan National Park is strictly controlled. Admission was 150 or 180 RMB from what I recall (no more than $30) and, like Jiuzhaigou in Sichuan, getting around the park is tightly controlled. (You have to take park-controlled buses from point to point, though at the various points, you can go out and explore the area.)
The landscape at this park, as mentioned, is quite unique. For anyone who has seen Chinese movies (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, for example, or Zhang Yimou’s Hero), the landscape will be familiar. The “far west” scenes in those movies were filmed near here in areas with identical landscapes. (I’m about 90% Hero’s western landscape was filmed just over the provincial border in Xinjiang. Crouching Tiger’s…I’m much less certain.)
After a few stops, we found that we were out in the middle of this out-of-this-world ghost city (Chinese definitely like to call these ghost cities) for a stunning sunset. After staying around for sunset for 30-45 minutes, we finally headed back to the visitor center and then boarded our own coach for the long, flat, 2-3 hour ride back to Dunhuang, where I gladly spent my last night in the nameless hotel before starting Friday’s slow trip back towards Lanzhou. Before bidding farewell to Dunhuang, though, Friday morning had an incredible trip – mostly unphotographed (as photography is forbidden and I tend to follow rules when traveling) of the Mogao Grottoes. More to come…
As usual, I hope you enjoy the pictures. Please feel free to leave any comments, questions, or suggestions.
Contents inside the vitrine dedicated to the project "GRITOS Y SUSURROS. Converses amb els radicals" [CRIES & WHISPERS: Conversations with Radicals], 2009.
Performance in five episodes, one per week, with an approximate duration of 90 minutes each, held at La Capella, located in the Santa Creu hospital complex (Barcelona). Limited audience, with prior registration and indiscriminate acceptance of requests. Entry subject to a strict dress code and in order of arrival until a maximum of 33 people.
GRITOS Y SUSURROS was a series of five performances that took place at La Capella, Barcelona, the former chapel of the 15th-century Santa Creu hospital complex, before captive audiences of 33 people. Each performance was documented by video and audio recordings. The project shares its main title with a 1972 film by Ingmar Bergman, in which cinematic techniques serve as dark metaphors for Christian allegory and the themes of agony and death. Like Bergman’s film, the performances remorselessly explored bleak subject matter tied to physical and psychic suffering through visually arresting set pieces and a dramatic palette of black, white, and red.
The wardrobe design included religious garments from Catholic religious orders, distinctive neck ruffs that were fashionable in European royal courts of the 16th century, leather military boots, “health goth” attire, and fetish hoods. Readings were performed as though rites were being administered, or invocations declared. At times, crouched figures rocked back-and-forth as if in ritual prayer. A scene around a large round table recalled an apostolic gathering or an aristocratic pageant. Several tableaux featured a hooded male “serf” directed into stress positions, being manacled or having his arms stretched out on a metal gibbet in an evocation of crucifixion. Other elements comprised actions of real physical violence with further echoes of the iconography of masochism and martyrdom. A tattooed performer slashed his side and tongue with blades, drawing blood, and suspended himself with chains and hooks that had been put through his skin at the knees.
In the resulting video piece, these events are all punctuated by harpsichord music: the sarabande from Georg Friedrich Händel’s "Keyboard Suite in D Minor" (1706), a composition derived from a form of dance considered so lascivious during the reign of Philip II of Spain that it was banned and punishable by whipping. This 29-minute video combines footage shot at all five performances. Audio recordings were released as the spoken-word CD "ÀNIMA NEGRA" [Black Soul] (2009) and form part of the audio programme of the present exhibition.
Text by Latitudes.
—
Exhibition by Joan Morey "COLLAPSE. Desiring machine, working machine", Centre d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona - Fabra i Coats, 20 September 2018–13 January 2019. Photo: Latitudes.
Since the late 1990s, Joan Morey (Mallorca, 1972) has produced an expansive body of live events, videos, installations, sound and graphic works, that has explored the intersection of theatre, cinema, philosophy, sexuality, and subjectivity. Morey’s work both critiques and embodies one of the most thorny and far-reaching aspects of human consciousness and behaviour – how we relate ourselves to others, as the oppressed or the oppressor. This central preoccupation with the exercise of power and authority seemingly accounts for the black and ominous tenor of his art.
COLLAPSE encompasses three parts. The first is presented over two floors of the Contemporary Art Centre of Barcelona - Fabra i Coats. ‘Desiring machine, Working machine’ is a survey of ten projects from the last fifteen years of the artist’s work. An exhibition display based around vitrines and video screens deployed as if sarcophagi or reliquaries, is presented alongside a continuous programme of audio works and a schedule of live performance extracts.
The second part of COLLAPSE takes place at the Centre d’Art Tecla Sala, L’Hospitalet de Llobregat (23 November 2018–13 January 2019) and is the definitive version of the touring exhibition ‘Social Body’.
Titled ‘Schizophrenic Machine’, the third and final part of the project comprises a major new performance event which will take place on January 10, 2019 at an especially resonant – yet, for the moment, deliberately undisclosed – location in Barcelona, where live action will be integrated within the longer narrative of the site’s physical and discursive past.
COLLAPSE is curated by Latitudes.
—> info: www.lttds.org/projects/morey/
February 20, 2004
Seventy-three forgotten, abandoned children are now well provided for and
living without fear at the Living Hope orphanage in Puebla, Mexico. Eight
adults and two children from Woodland Hills spent New Year¹s week in Puebla
ministering to these children and the dedicated workers who now care for
them in a safe, loving environment.
The children were abandoned by their parents and forced to live on the
streets where they were easy targets for abuse. ³If I had a fraction of what
has happened to these children happen to me, I¹d be curled up in a corner,²
says Joan Eggert who, along with her 10-year-old daughter, Jordyn, was part
of the team. ³But they are so trusting and so loving, they just run into
your arms.² Unfortunately, most of the children running into their arms had
the flu.
Shortly before the mission team arrived, what the Mexicans call the ³United
States flu² had swept through the orphanage. Although the team was a little
apprehensive, they just couldn¹t resist holding the children. ³They just
want mommies and daddies, so they can curl up in their laps,² explained
Joan. The team realized early on that they had all been exposed to the flu
virus shortly after arriving at the orphanage and that there was no point in
holding back now. So they loved, hugged and cuddled with reckless abandon.
Before it was all over, half of the team contracted the flu. But Joan said,
³Even after they got sick, nobody was sorry they went. They were all
blessed.²
According to Associate Youth Pastor Jordan Schroeder, the purpose of any
trip to Puebla is to bring money and a crew and ask the people that run the
orphanage what they would like the team to do. ³It¹s all about service,²
Jordan explained. The leadership team spends considerable effort trying to
impart an attitude of service into mission trip participants. Jordan
explained that they want to avoid any appearance of ³Americans coming with
all the answers.² Instead, they aim to humble themselves and serve the
leaders of the orphanage in whatever way they request.
In this case, the assignment was to paint the ministry house. The ministry
house is a three-bedroom home with a kitchen and living room. It¹s also
where the team stayed during their visit. But when team members are asked
about the trip, very little is said about paint it¹s always about the
people.
On New Year¹s Day, the team put on a carnival for the kids. There were
balloons, games and all the usual carnival fare. Many of the kids were still
sick, but they didn¹t seem to care. They all had a tremendous amount of fun.
And since it was New Year¹s Day, there was already a sense of celebration in
the air.
While ministry to the kids is always a big part of the trip, the real
purpose is to minister to the workers that keep the orphanage running. The
kids always get plenty of care, love and ministry from the workers. It¹s the
workers that need encouragement and help even in the little things.
Joan is a hairdresser and spends her time there doing the workers¹ hair. One
woman, with hair to her waist, wanted a perm so badly that she was willing
to sit in the chair all day despite the fact that she was a flu victim and
had a raging fever. She had been waiting and anticipating the team¹s visit
because she had been promised a perm during the previous trip. When the
woman came in for her perm, she was obviously ill. Joan hesitated for fear
of catching the flu, but she said the Lord reminded her that ³it¹s not about
you; you¹re here to serve.² The perm went well, and Joan never did get sick.
From that point on, she chuckled every time she caught herself hesitating
because a person was sick.
Esperanza Viva (Living Hope) Youth Home was opened in September 1995 by
Jerry and Susan McNally, who left St. Paul to open the orphanage. While the
McNally¹s are responsible for oversight of the home, it is almost entirely
run by indigenous people. The current president of the orphanage is a
Mexican.
The ultimate vision of Living Hope is to develop property into the City of
Hope which could support over 1,000 children and workers. With this
expansion, there would be greater capacity for outreach to the community at
large, and according to McNally, ³It would become a shining illustration to
the world of the Father-heart of God for His weary and downtrodden
children.² As an early step toward fulfillment of that vision, a church was
recently opened to serve the Puebla community.
Among the workers at Living Hope are Ryan and Molly Nielsen, missionaries
from Woodland Hills. The Nielsens, along with their two young children,
moved to Puebla in September 2003. They are expecting their third child in
August. Molly said that during a one-week trip to Guatemala, ³the Lord
called us out and changed our lives completely. Now we are here serving long
term.²
The Nielsens are appreciative of every group that comes down. They say that
the support in prayer, encouragement and fellowship that they receive really
makes a difference to them. They delight in watching each team member
experience things that will change him or her forever. They also watch for
any sign that there may be future long-term missionaries in the group that
just don¹t know it yet. There is a real enjoyment in watching the team bless
the children, and seeing how, in turn, the children bless the team. Most
team members agree that while they go to bring a blessing, they leave more
blessed than they arrived.
Michael Bushilla has been to Mexico twice before, but not to the orphanage.
This time he brought his wife Paula and 12-year-old son Alex. They sponsor a
boy and a girl at the orphanage and were able to visit them. The boy, Luis,
is also 12. He and Alex formed a bond in spite of a challenging language
barrier. Because he has been on several trips, one might wonder if the trips
get routine. But Michael says, ³Every mission trip changes you to a certain
extent. It puts everything back into perspective.² Commenting on this trip
he says, ³It was an awesome experience.²
The Eggert family also sponsors a child at Living Hope. When they selected a
child, they looked for someone near Jordyn¹s age so that the two could more
easily relate. They decided on Ofelia, whose birth date is only one day
before Jordyn¹s. This was their second trip to Puebla, and Joan is amazed at
how at home her daughter is there. She said Jordyn looked at her during the
trip, and in spite of being sick with the flu told her mom, ³I never want to
go home.²
How much trouble is it to go on a missions trip? There are a lot of meetings
for planning and some just for bonding with other team members. Then there¹s
the fund raising activities. But was it too hard? Joan said, ³God opened all
the doors, we just walked right through.²
So what¹s a mission trip like? Joan sums it up like this, ³It was just
amazing. I call it a love-soaker.²
article by Mark Kretschmar
See this article at www.whchurch.org/content/page_288.htm
Banteay Srei or Banteay Srey (Khmer: ប្រាសាទបន្ទាយស្រី) is a 10th-century Cambodian temple dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. Located in the area of Angkor in Cambodia. It lies near the hill of Phnom Dei, 25 km north-east of the main group of temples that once belonged to the medieval capitals of Yasodharapura and Angkor Thom. Banteay Srei is built largely of red sandstone, a medium that lends itself to the elaborate decorative wall carvings which are still observable today. The buildings themselves are miniature in scale, unusually so when measured by the standards of Angkorian construction. These factors have made the temple extremely popular with tourists, and have led to its being widely praised as a "precious gem", or the "jewel of Khmer art."
HISTORY
FOUNDATION & DEDICATION
Consecrated on 22 April 967 A.D., Bantãy Srĕi was the only major temple at Angkor not built by a monarch; its construction is credited to a courtier named Yajnavaraha / Yajñavarāha (modern Khmer: យជ្ញវរាហៈ), who served as a counsellor to king Rajendravarman II (modern Khmer: ព្រះបាទរាជេន្រ្ទវរ្ម័ន).The foundational stela says that Yajnavaraha, grandson of king Harsavarman I, was a scholar and philanthropist who helped those who suffered from illness, injustice, or poverty. His pupil was the future king Jayavarman V (r. 968- ca. 1001). Originally, the temple was surrounded by a town called Īśvarapura.
Yajñavarāha's temple was primarily dedicated to the Hindu god Śiva. Originally, it was carried the name Tribhuvanamaheśvara - great lord of the threefold world - in reference to the Shaivite linga that served as its central religious image. However, the temple buildings appear to be divided along the central east-west axis between those buildings located south of the axis, which are devoted to Śiva, and those north of the axis, which are devoted to Viṣṇu.
The temple's modern name, Bantãy Srĕi - citadel of the women, or citadel of beauty - is probably related to the intricacy of the bas relief carvings found on the walls and the tiny dimensions of the buildings themselves. Some have speculated that it relates to the many devatas carved into the walls of the buildings.
EXPANSION & REDICATION
Bantãy Srĕi was subject to further expansion and rebuilding work in the eleventh century. At some point it came under the control of the king and had its original dedication changed; the inscription K 194 from Phnoṃ Sandak, dated Monday, the 14th or 28 July 1119 A.D. records (line B 13) the temple being given to the priest Divākarapaṇḍita and being rededicated to Śiva. It remained in use at least until the fourteenth century according to the last known inscription K 569, dated Thursday, 8 August 1303 A.D.
RESTAURATION
The temple was rediscovered only in 1914, and was the subject of a celebrated case of art theft when André Malraux stole four devatas in 1923 (he was soon arrested and the figures returned). The incident stimulated interest in the site, which was cleared the following year, and in the 1930s Banteay Srei was restored through the first important use of anastylosis at Angkor whereby a ruined building or monument is restored using the original architectural elements to the greatest degree possible. Until the discovery of the foundation stela in 1936, it had been assumed that the extreme decoration indicated a later date than was in fact the case. To prevent the site from water damage, the joint Cambodian-Swiss Banteay Srei Conservation Project installed a drainage system between 2000 and 2003. Measures were also taken to prevent damage to the temples walls from nearby trees.
Unfortunately, the temple has been ravaged by pilfering and vandalism. When toward the end of the 20th century authorities removed some original statues and replaced them with concrete replicas, looters took to attacking the replicas. A statue of Shiva and his shakti Uma, removed to the National Museum in Phnom Penh for safekeeping, was assaulted in the museum itself.
MATERIALS & STYLE
Banteay Srei is built largely of a hard red sandstone that can be carved like wood. Brick and laterite were used only for the enclosure walls and some structural elements. The temple is known for the beauty of its sandstone lintels and pediments.
A pediment is the roughly triangular space above a rectangular doorway or openings. At Banteay Srei, pediments are relatively large in comparison to the openings below, and take a sweeping gabled shape. For the first time in the history of Khmer architecture, whole scenes of mythological subject-matter are depicted on the pediments.
A lintel is a horizontal beam spanning the gap between two posts. Some lintels serve a structural purpose, serving to support the weight of the superstructure, while others are purely decorative in purpose. The lintels at Banteay Srei are beautifully carved, rivalling those of the 9th century Preah Ko style in quality.
Noteworthy decorative motifs include the kala (a toothy monster symbolic of time), the guardian dvarapala (an armed protector of the temple) and devata (demi-goddess), the false door, and the colonette. Indeed, decorative carvings seem to cover almost every available surface. According to pioneering Angkor scholar Maurice Glaize, "Given the very particular charm of Banteay Srei – its remarkable state of preservation and the excellence of a near perfect ornamental technique – one should not hesitate, of all the monuments of the Angkor group, to give it the highest priority." At Banteay Srei, wrote Glaize, "the work relates more closely to the art of the goldsmith or to carving in wood than to sculpture in stone".
THE SITE
The site consists of three concentric rectangular enclosures constructed on an east-west axis. A causeway situated on the axis leads from an outer gopura, or gate, to the third or outermost of the three enclosures. The inner enclosure contains the sanctuary, consisting of an entrance chamber and three towers, as well as two buildings conventionally referred to as libraries.
THE OUTER GOPURA
The gopura is all that remains of the outer wall surrounding the town of Isvapura. The wall is believed to have measured approximately 500 m square, and may have been constructed of wood. The gopura's eastern pediment shows Indra, who was associated with that direction, mounted on his three-headed elephant Airavata. The 67 m causeway with the remains of corridors on either side connects the gopura with the third enclosure. North and south of this causeway are galleries with a north-south orientation.
THE THIRD (OUTER) ENCLOSURE
The third enclosure is 95 by 110 m; it is surrounded by a laterite wall breached by gopuras at the eastern and western ends. Neither pediment of the eastern gopura is in situ. The west-facing pediment is now located in the Musée Guimet in Paris. It depicts a scene from the Mahabhārata in which the Asura brothers Sunda and Upasunda fight over the Apsara Tilottama. The east-facing pediment is lying on the ground. It depicts a scene from the Rāmāyaṇa in which a demon seizes Rama's wife Sita. Most of the area within the third enclosure is occupied by a moat divided into two parts by causeways to the east and west.
THE SECOND ENCLOSURE
The second enclosure sits between an outer laterite wall measuring 38 by 42 m, with gopuras at the eastern and western ends, and a brick inner enclosure wall, measuring 24 by 24 m. The western gopura features an interesting bas relief depicting the duel of the monkey princes Vāli and Sugriva, as well as Rāma's intervention on Sugrīva's behalf. The inner enclosure wall has collapsed, leaving a gopura at the eastern end and a brick shrine at the western. The eastern pediment of the gopura shows Śiva Nataraja; the west-facing pediment has an image of Durga. Likewise, the laterite galleries which once filled the second enclosure (one each to north and south, two each to east and west) have partially collapsed. A pediment on one of the galleries shows the lion-man Narasiṃha clawing the demon Hiranyakashipu.
THE FIRST (INNER) ENCLOSURE
Between the gopuras on the collapsed inner wall are the buildings of the inner enclosure: a library in the south-east corner and another in the north-east corner, and in the centre the sanctuary set on a T-shaped platform 0.9 m high. Besides being the most extravagantly decorated parts of the temple, these have also been the most successfully restored (helped by the durability of their sandstone and their small scale). In 2010, the first enclosure is open to visitors again, but the inner temples are roped off and inaccessible.
THE LIBRARIES
The two libraries are of brick, laterite and sandstone. Each library has two pediments, one on the eastern side and one on the western. According to Maurice Glaize, the four library pediments, "representing the first appearance of tympanums with scenes, are works of the highest order. Superior in composition to any which followed, they show true craftsmanship in their modelling in a skilful blend of stylisation and realism."
The east-facing pediment on the southern library shows Śiva seated on the summit of Mount Kailāsa, his mythological abode. His consort Umā sits on his lap and clings anxiously to his torso. Other beings are also present on the slopes of the mountain, arranged in a strict hierarchy of three tiers from top to bottom. In the top tier sit bearded wise men and ascetics, in the middle tier mythological figures with the heads of animals and the bodies of humans, and in the bottom tier large animals, including a number of lions. In the middle of the scene stands the ten-headed demon king Rāvaṇa. He is shaking the mountain in its very foundations as the animals flee from his presence and as the wise men and mythological beings discuss the situation or pray. According to the legend, Śiva stopped Rāvaṇa from shaking the mountain by using his toe to press down on the mountain and to trap Rāvana underneath for 1000 years.
The west-facing pediment on southern library shows Śiva again seated on the summit of Mount Kailāsa. He is looking to his left at the god of love Kāma, who is aiming an arrow at him. Umā sits to Śiva's right; he is handing her a chain of beads. The slopes of the mountain are crowded with other beings, again arranged in a strict hierarchy from top to bottom. Just under Śiva sit a group of bearded wise men and ascetics, under whom the second tier is occupied by the mythological beings with the heads of animals and the bodies of humans; the lowest tier belongs the common people, who mingle sociably with tame deer and a large gentle bull. According to the legend, Kāma fired an arrow at Śiva in order to cause Śiva to take an interest in Umā. Śiva, however, was greatly angered by this provocation, and punished Kāma by gazing upon him with his third eye, frying Kāma to cinders.
The east-facing pediment on the northern library shows the god of the sky Indra creating rain to put out a forest fire started by the god of fire Agni for purposes of killing the nāga king Takshaka who lived in Khandava Forest. The Mahābhāratan heroes Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna are shown helping Agni by firing a dense hail of arrows to block Indra's rain. Takṣaka's son Aśvasena is depicted attempting to escape from the conflagration, while other animals stampede about in panic.
The west-facing pediment on the southern library depicts Kṛṣṇa slaying his wicked uncle Kamsa.
THE SANCTUARY
The sanctuary is entered from the east by a doorway only 1.08 m in height: inside is an entrance chamber (or maṇḍapa) with a corbelled brick roof, then a short corridor leading to three towers to the west: the central tower is the tallest, at 9.8 m. Glaize notes the impression of delicacy given the towers by the antefixes on each of their tiers. The six stairways leading up to the platform were each guarded by two kneeling statues of human figures with animal heads; most of those now in place are replicas, the originals having been stolen or removed to museums.
___________________________
Angkor is a region of Cambodia that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire, which flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries. The Angkorian period began in AD 802, when the Khmer Hindu monarch Jayavarman II declared himself a universal monarch and god-king, and lasted until the late 14th century, first falling under Ayutthayan suzerainty in 1351. A Khmer rebellion resulted in the 1431 sacking of Angkor by Ayutthaya, causing its population to migrate south to Longvek.
The ruins of Angkor are located amid forests and farmland to the north of the Great Lake (Tonlé Sap) and south of the Kulen Hills, near modern-day Siem Reap city, in Siem Reap Province. The temples of the Angkor area number over one thousand, ranging in scale from nondescript piles of brick rubble scattered through rice fields to the magnificent Angkor Wat, said to be the world's largest single religious monument. Many of the temples at Angkor have been restored, and together, they comprise the most significant site of Khmer architecture. Visitor numbers approach two million annually, and the entire expanse, including Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom is collectively protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This popularity of the site among tourists presents multiple challenges to the preservation of the ruins.
In 2007, an international team of researchers using satellite photographs and other modern techniques concluded that Angkor had been the largest preindustrial city in the world, with an elaborate infrastructure system connecting an urban sprawl of at least 1,000 square kilometres to the well-known temples at its core. The closest rival to Angkor, the Mayan city of Tikal in Guatemala, was between 100 and 150 square kilometres in total size. Although its population remains a topic of research and debate, newly identified agricultural systems in the Angkor area may have supported up to one million people.
The Angkorian period may be said to have begun shortly after 800 AD, when the Khmer King Jayavarman II announced the independence of Kambujadesa (Cambodia) from Java and established his capital of Hariharalaya (now known as Roluos) at the northern end of Tonlé Sap. Through a program of military campaigns, alliances, marriages and land grants, he achieved a unification of the country bordered by China to the north, Champa (now Central Vietnam) to the east, the ocean to the south and a place identified by a stone inscription as the land of cardamoms and mangoes to the west. In 802, Jayavarman articulated his new status by declaring himself universal monarch and, in a move that was to be imitated by his successors and that linked him to the cult of Siva, taking on the epithet of god-king (devaraja). Before Jayavarman, Cambodia had consisted of a number of politically independent principalities collectively known to the Chinese by the names Funan and Chenla.
In 889, Yasovarman ascended to the throne. A great king and an accomplished builder, he was celebrated by one inscription as "a lion-man; he tore the enemy with the claws of his grandeur; his teeth were his policies; his eyes were the Veda." Near the old capital of Hariharalaya, Yasovarman constructed a new city, called Yasodharapura. In the tradition of his predecessors, he also constructed a massive reservoir called baray. The significance of such reservoirs has been debated by modern scholars, some of whom have seen in them a means of irrigating rice fields, and others of whom have regarded them as religiously charged symbols of the great mythological oceans surrounding Mount Meru, the abode of the gods. The mountain, in turn, was represented by an elevated temple, in which the "god-king" was represented by a lingam. In accordance with this cosmic symbolism, Yasovarman built his central temple on a low hill known as Phnom Bakheng, surrounding it with a moat fed from the baray. He also built numerous other Hindu temples and ashrams, or retreats for ascetics.
Over the next 300 years, between 900 and 1200, the Khmer Empire produced some of the world's most magnificent architectural masterpieces in the area known as Angkor. Most are concentrated in an area approximately 24 km east to west and 8.0 km north to south, although the Angkor Archaeological Park, which administers the area, includes sites as far away as Kbal Spean, about 48 km to the north. Some 72 major temples or other buildings are found within this area, and the remains of several hundred additional minor temple sites are scattered throughout the landscape beyond. Because of the dispersed, low-density nature of the medieval Khmer settlement pattern, Angkor lacks a formal boundary, and its extent is therefore difficult to determine. However, a specific area of at least 1,000 qkm beyond the major temples is defined by a complex system of infrastructure, including roads and canals that indicate a high degree of connectivity and functional integration with the urban core. In terms of spatial extent (although not in terms of population), this makes it the largest urban agglomeration in human history prior to the Industrial Revolution, easily surpassing the nearest claim, that of the Mayan city of Tikal.
The principal temple of the Angkorian region, Angkor Wat, was built between 1113 and 1150 by King Suryavarman II. Suryavarman ascended to the throne after prevailing in a battle with a rival prince. An inscription says that, in the course of combat, Suryavarman leapt onto his rival's war elephant and killed him, just as the mythical bird-man Garuda slays a serpent.
WIKIPEDIA
The Khajuraho Group of Monuments is a group of Hindu and Jain temples in Madhya Pradesh, India, about 175 kilometres southeast of Jhansi. They are one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India. The temples are famous for their nagara-style architectural symbolism and their erotic sculptures.
Most Khajuraho temples were built between 950 and 1050 by the Chandela dynasty. Historical records note that the Khajuraho temple site had 85 temples by 12th century, spread over 20 square kilometers. Of these, only about 20 temples have survived, spread over 6 square kilometers. Of the various surviving temples, the Kandariya Mahadeva Temple is decorated with a profusion of sculptures with intricate details, symbolism and expressiveness of ancient Indian art.
The Khajuraho group of temples were built together but were dedicated to two religions - namely Hinduism and Jainism - suggesting a tradition of acceptance and respect for diverse religious views among Hindus and Jains.
LOCATION
Khajuraho group of monuments are located in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, in Chhatarpur district, about 620 kilometres southeast of New Delhi. The temples are in a small town also known as Khajuraho, with a population of about 20,000 people (2001 Census).
Khajuraho is served by Civil Aerodrome Khajuraho (IATA Code: HJR), with services to Delhi, Agra, Varanasi and Mumbai. The site is also linked by Indian Railways service, with the railway station located approximately six kilometres from the monuments entrance.
The monuments are about 10 kilometres off the east-west National Highway 75, and about 50 kilometres from the city of Chhatarpur, that is connected to Bhopal - the state capital - by the SW-NE running National Highway 86.
HISTORY
The Khajuraho group of monuments was built during the rule of the Rajput Chandela dynasty. The building activity started almost immediately after the rise of their power, throughout their kingdom to be later known as Bundelkhand. Most temples were built during the reigns of the Hindu kings Yashovarman and Dhanga. Yashovarman's legacy is best exhibited by Lakshmana temple. Vishvanatha temple best highlights King Dhanga's reign. The largest and currently most famous surviving temple is Kandariya Mahadeva built in the reign of King Ganda from 1017-1029 CE. The temple inscriptions suggest many of the currently surviving temples were complete between 970 to 1030 CE, with further temples completed during the following decades.
The Khajuraho temples were built about 35 miles from the medieval city of Mahoba, the capital of the Chandela dynasty, in the Kalinjar region. In ancient and medieval literature, their kingdom has been referred to as Jijhoti, Jejahoti, Chih-chi-to and Jejakabhukti.
Khajuraho was mentioned by Abu Rihan-al-Biruni, the Persian historian who accompanied Mahmud of Ghazni in his raid of Kalinjar in 1022 CE; he mentions Khajuraho as the capital of Jajahuti. The raid was unsuccessful, and a peace accord was reached when the Hindu king agreed to pay a ransom to Mahmud of Ghazni to end the attack and leave.
Khajuraho temples were in active use through the end of 12th century. This changed in the 13th century, after the army of Delhi Sultanate, under the command of the Muslim Sultan Qutb-ud-din Aibak, attacked and seized the Chandela kingdom. About a century later, Ibn Battuta, the Moroccan traveller in his memoirs about his stay in India from 1335 to 1342 CE, mentioned visiting Khajuraho temples, calling them “Kajarra” as follows:
...near (Khajuraho) temples, which contain idols that have been mutilated by the Moslems, live a number of yogis whose matted locks have grown as long as their bodies. And on account of extreme asceticism they are all yellow in colour. Many Moslems attend these men in order to take lessons (yoga) from them.
— Ibn Battuta, about 1335 CE, Riḥlat Ibn Baṭūṭah, Translated by Arthur Cotterell
Central Indian region, where Khajuraho temples are, remained in the control of many different Muslim dynasties from 13th century through the 18th century. In this period, some temples were desecrated, followed by a long period when they were left in neglect. In 1495 CE, for example, Sikandar Lodi’s campaign of temple destruction included Khajuraho. The remoteness and isolation of Khajuraho protected the Hindu and Jain temples from continued destruction by Muslims. Over the centuries, vegetation and forests overgrew, took over the temples.
In the 1830s, local Hindus guided a British surveyor, T.S. Burt, to the temples and they were thus rediscovered by the global audience. Alexander Cunningham later reported, few years after the rediscovery, that the temples were secretly in use by yogis and thousands of Hindus would arrive for pilgrimage during Shivaratri celebrated annually in February or March based on a lunar calendar. In 1852, Maisey prepared earliest drawings of the Khajuraho temples.
NOMENCLATURE
The name Khajuraho, or Kharjuravāhaka, is derived from ancient Sanskrit (kharjura, खर्जूर means date palm, and vāhaka, वाहक means "one who carries" or bearer). Local legends state that the temples had two golden date-palm trees as their gate (missing when they were rediscovered). Desai states that Kharjuravāhaka also means scorpion bearer, which is another symbolic name for deity Shiva (who wears snakes and scorpion garlands in his fierce form).
Cunningham’s nomenclature and systematic documentation work in 1850s and 1860s have been widely adopted and continue to be in use. He grouped the temples into the Western group around Lakshmana, Eastern group around Javeri, and Southern group around Duladeva.
Khajuraho is one of the four holy sites linked to deity Shiva (the other three are Kedarnath, Kashi and Gaya). Its origin and design is a subject of scholarly studies. Shobita Punja has proposed that the temple’s origin reflect the Hindu mythology in which Khajuraho is the place where Shiva got married; with Raghuvamsha verse 5.53, Matangeshvara honoring ‘’Matanga’’, or god of love.
DESCRIPTION
The temple site is within Vindhya mountain range in central India. An ancient local legend held that Hindu deity Shiva and other gods enjoyed visiting the dramatic hill formation in Kalinjar area. The center of this region is Khajuraho, set midst local hills and rivers. The temple complex reflects the ancient Hindu tradition of building temples where gods love to play.
The temples are clustered near water, another typical feature of Hindu temples. The current water bodies include Sib Sagar, Khajur Sagar (also called Ninora Tal) and Khudar Nadi (river). The local legends state that the temple complex had 64 water bodies, of which 56 have been physically identified by archeologists so far.
All temples, except one (Chaturbhuja) face sunrise - another symbolic feature that is predominant in Hindu temples. The relative layout of temples integrate masculine and feminine deities and symbols highlight the interdependence. The art work symbolically highlight the four goals of life considered necessary and proper in Hinduism - dharma, kama, artha and moksha.
Of the surviving temples, 6 are dedicated to Shiva and his consorts, 8 to Vishnu and his affinities, 1 to Ganesha, 1 to Sun god, 3 to Jain Tirthanks. For some ruins, there is insufficient evidence to assign the temple to specific deities with confidence.
An overall examination of site suggests that the Hindu symbolic mandala design principle of square and circles is present each temple plan and design. Further, the territory is laid out in three triangles that converge to form a pentagon. Scholars suggest that this reflects the Hindu symbolism for three realms or trilokinatha, and five cosmic substances or panchbhuteshvara. The temple site highlights Shiva, the one who destroys and recycles life, thereby controlling the cosmic dance of time, evolution and dissolution. The temples have a rich display of intricately carved statues. While they are famous for their erotic sculpture, sexual themes cover less than 10% of the temple sculpture. Further, most erotic scene panels are neither prominent nor emphasized at the expense of the rest, rather they are in proportional balance with the non-sexual images. The viewer has to look closely to find them, or be directed by a guide. The arts cover numerous aspects of human life and values considered important in Hindu pantheon. Further, the images are arranged in a configuration to express central ideas of Hinduism. All three ideas from Āgamas are richly expressed in Khajuraho temples - Avyakta, Vyaktavyakta and Vyakta.
The Beejamandal temple is under excavation. It has been identified with the Vaidyanath temple mentioned in the Grahpati Kokalla inscription.
Of all temples, the Matangeshvara temple remains an active site of worship. It is another square grid temple, with a large 2.5 metres high and 1.1 metres diameter lingam, placed on a 7.6 metres diameter platform.
The most visited temple, Kandariya Mahadev, has an area of about 6,500 square feet and a shikhara (spire) that rises 116 feet. Jain templesThe Jain temples are located on east-southeast region of Khajuraho monuments. Chausath jogini temple features 64 jogini, while Ghantai temple features bells sculptured on its pillars.
ARCHITECTURE OF THE TEMPLES
Khajuraho temples, like almost all Hindu temple designs, follow a grid geometrical design called vastu-purusha-mandala. This design plan has three important components - Mandala means circle, Purusha is universal essence at the core of Hindu tradition, while Vastu means the dwelling structure.
The design lays out a Hindu temple in a symmetrical, concentrically layered, self-repeating structure around the core of the temple called garbhagriya, where the abstract principle Purusha and the primary deity of the temple dwell. The shikhara, or spire, of the temple rises above the garbhagriya. This symmetry and structure in design is derived from central beliefs, myths, cardinality and mathematical principles.
The circle of mandala circumscribe the square. The square is considered divine for its perfection and as a symbolic product of knowledge and human thought, while circle is considered earthly, human and observed in everyday life (moon, sun, horizon, water drop, rainbow). Each supports the other. The square is divided into perfect 64 sub-squares called padas.
Most Khajuraho temples deploy the 8x8 padas grid Manduka Vastupurushamandala, with pitha mandala the square grid incorporated in the design of the spires. The primary deity or lingas are located in the grid’s Brahma padas.
The architecture is symbolic and reflects the central Hindu beliefs through its form, structure and arrangement of its parts. The mandapas as well as the arts are arranged in the Khajuraho temples in a symmetric repeating patterns, even though each image or sculpture is distinctive in its own way. The relative placement of the images are not random but together they express ideas, just like connected words form sentences and paragraphs to compose ideas. This fractal pattern that is common in Hindu temples. Various statues and panels have inscriptions. Many of the inscriptions on the temple walls are poems with double meanings, something that the complex structure of Sanskrit allows in creative compositions. All Khajuraho temples, except one, face sunrise, and the entrance for the devotee is this east side.Above the vastu-purusha-mandala of each temple is a superstructure with a dome called Shikhara (or Vimana, Spire). Variations in spire design come from variation in degrees turned for the squares. The temple Shikhara, in some literature, is linked to mount Kailash or Meru, the mythical abode of the gods.In each temple, the central space typically is surrounded by an ambulatory for the pilgrim to walk around and ritually circumambulate the Purusa and the main deity. The pillars, walls and ceilings around the space, as well as outside have highly ornate carvings or images of the four just and necessary pursuits of life - kama, artha, dharma and moksa. This clockwise walk around is called pradakshina. Larger Khajuraho temples also have pillared halls called mandapa. One near the entrance, on the east side, serves as the waiting room for pilgrims and devotees. The mandapas are also arranged by principles of symmetry, grids and mathematical precision. This use of same underlying architectural principle is common in Hindu temples found all over India. Each Khajuraho temple is distinctly carved yet also repeating the central common principles in almost all Hindu temples, one which Susan Lewandowski refers to as “an organism of repeating cells”.
CONSTRUCTION
The temples are grouped into three geographical divisions: western, eastern and southern.
The Khajuraho temples are made of sandstone, with a granite foundation that is almost concealed from view. The builders didn't use mortar: the stones were put together with mortise and tenon joints and they were held in place by gravity. This form of construction requires very precise joints. The columns and architraves were built with megaliths that weighed up to 20 tons. Some repair work in the 19th Century was done with brick and mortar; however these have aged faster than original materials and darkened with time, thereby seeming out of place.
The Khajuraho and Kalinjar region is home to superior quality of sandstone, which can be precision carved. The surviving sculpture reflect fine details such as strands of hair, manicured nails and intricate jewelry.
While recording the television show Lost Worlds (History Channel) at Khajuraho, Alex Evans recreated a stone sculpture under 4 feet that took about 60 days to carve in an attempt to develop a rough idea how much work must have been involved. Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehner also conducted experiments to quarry limestone which took 12 quarrymen 22 days to quarry about 400 tons of stone. They concluded that these temples would have required hundreds of highly trained sculptors.
CHRONOLOGY
The Khajuraho group of temples belong to Vaishnavism school of Hinduism, Saivism school of Hinduism and Jainism - nearly a third each. Archaeological studies suggest all three types of temples were under construction at about the same time in late 10th century, and in use simultaneously. Will Durant states that this aspect of Khajuraho temples illustrates the tolerance and respect for different religious viewpoints in the Hindu and Jain traditions. In each group of Khajuraho temples, there were major temples surrounded by smaller temples - a grid style that is observed to varying degrees in Hindu temples in Angkor Wat, Parambaran and South India.
The largest surviving Saiva temple is Khandarya Mahadeva, while the largest surviving Vaishnava group includes Chaturbhuja and Ramachandra.
Kandariya Mahadeva Temple plan is 109 ft in length by 60 ft, and rises 116 ft above ground and 88 ft above its own floor. The central padas are surrounded by three rows of sculptured figures, with over 870 statues, most being half life size (2.5 to 3 feet). The spire is a self repeating fractal structure.
ARTS AND SCULPTURE
The Khajuraho temples feature a variety of art work, of which 10% is sexual or erotic art outside and inside the temples. Some of the temples that have two layers of walls have small erotic carvings on the outside of the inner wall. Some scholars suggest these to be tantric sexual practices. Other scholars state that the erotic arts are part of Hindu tradition of treating kama as an essential and proper part of human life, and its symbolic or explicit display is common in Hindu temples. James McConnachie, in his history of the Kamasutra, describes the sexual-themed Khajuraho sculptures as "the apogee of erotic art": "Twisting, broad-hipped and high breasted nymphs display their generously contoured and bejewelled bodies on exquisitely worked exterior wall panels. These fleshy apsaras run riot across the surface of the stone, putting on make-up, washing their hair, playing games, dancing, and endlessly knotting and unknotting their girdles....Beside the heavenly nymphs are serried ranks of griffins, guardian deities and, most notoriously, extravagantly interlocked maithunas, or lovemaking couples."
The temples have several thousand statues and art works, with Kandarya Mahadeva Temple alone decorated with over 870. Some 10% of these iconographic carvings contain sexual themes and various sexual poses. A common misconception is that, since the old structures with carvings in Khajuraho are temples, the carvings depict sex between deities; however the kama arts represent diverse sexual expressions of different human beings. The vast majority of arts depict various aspects the everyday life, mythical stories as well as symbolic display of various secular and spiritual values important in Hindu tradition. For example, depictions show women putting on makeup, musicians making music, potters, farmers, and other folks in their daily life during the medieval era. These scenes are in the outer padas as is typical in Hindu temples.
There is iconographic symbolism embedded in the arts displayed in Khajuraho temples. Core Hindu values are expressed in multitude of ways. Even the Kama scenes, when seen in combination of sculptures that precede and follow, depict the spiritual themes such as moksha. In the words of Stella Kramrisch,
This state which is “like a man and woman in close embrace” is a symbol of moksa, final release or reunion of two principles, the essence (Purusha) and the nature (Prakriti).
— Stella Kramrisch, 1976
The Khajuraho temples represent one expression of many forms of arts that flourished in Rajput kingdoms of India from 8th through 10th century CE. For example, contemporary with Khajuraho were the publications of poems and drama such as Prabodhacandrodaya, Karpuramanjari, Viddhasalabhanjika and Kavyamimansa. Some of the themes expressed in these literary works are carved as sculpture in Khajuraho temples. Some sculptures at the Khajuraho monuments dedicated to Vishnu include the Vyalas, which are hybrid imaginary animals with lions body, and are found in other Indian temples. Some of these hybrid mythical art work include Vrik Vyala (hybrid of wolf and lion) and Gaja Vyala (hybrid of elephant and lion). These Vyalas may represent syncretic, creative combination of powers innate in the two.
TOURISM AND CULTURAL EVENTS
The temples in Khajuraho are broadly divided into three parts: the Eastern group, the Southern Group and the Western group of temples of which the Western group alone has the facility of an Audio guided tour wherein the tourists are guided through the seven eight temples. There is also an audio guided tour developed by the Archaeological Survey of India which includes a narration of the temple history and architecture.
The Khajuraho Dance Festival is held every year in February. It features various classical Indian dances set against the backdrop of the Chitragupta or Vishwanath Temples.
The Khajuraho temple complex offers a light and sound show every evening. The first show is in English language and the second one in Hindi. It is held in the open lawns in the temple complex, and has received mixed reviews.
The Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development has set up kiosks at the Khajuraho railway station, with tourist officers to provide information for Khajuraho visitors.
___________________________________________________________________
Der Tempelbezirk von Khajuraho umfasst eine Gruppe von etwa 20 Tempeln im Zentrum und in der näheren Umgebung der Stadt Khajuraho im indischen Bundesstaat Madhya Pradesh. Sie zählen zum UNESCO-Welterbe.
GESCHICHTE
Nahezu alle Tempel Khajurahos wurde von den Herrschern der Chandella-Dynastie zwischen 950 und 1120 erbaut. Die Chandellas waren ein zwischen dem 10. und 16. Jahrhundert regierender Rajputen-Klan, welcher sich um 950 in Gwalior festsetzte. Im 10. und 11. Jahrhundert waren die Chandellas die führende Macht in Nordindien, wenngleich sie formell noch bis 1018 Vasallen der Pratihara waren.
Nach dem Niedergang der Dynastie im 12. Jahrhundert wurden die Tempel kaum noch oder gar nicht mehr benutzt und blieben dem Wuchs des Dschungels überlassen. Der politisch, militärisch und wirtschaftlich bedeutungslos gewordene Ort lag abseits aller Wege und blieb somit auch in der Zeit des islamischen Vordringens in Nordindien von Zerstörungen verschont. Im 18. und 19. Jahrhundert zählte die einstmals bedeutsame Stadt nur noch etwa 300 Einwohner. Im 19. Jahrhundert wurden die Tempel von den Briten 'wiederentdeckt'. Zu Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts begannen systematische Sicherungs- und Restaurierungsarbeiten, die schließlich zur Wiederherstellung dieses einzigartigen Architektur-Ensembles führten.
TEMPEL
Ursprünglich gab es in Khajuraho etwa 80 Tempelbauten verstreut auf einer Gesamtfläche von ca. 21 Quadratkilometer, heutzutage sind davon nur noch etwa 20 erhalten, von denen die meisten in zwei Gruppen stehen. Die Mehrzahl der Tempel ist den hinduistischen Hauptgöttern geweiht, einige den Jaina-Tirthankaras. Buddhistische Bauten gab es wohl nicht, jedenfalls wurden keine buddhistischen Skulpturen entdeckt.
Alle Tempel stehen auf 1,50 bis 3 Meter hohen Plattformen (jagatis), die das Bauwerk vor Witterungseinflüssen (Monsunregen) und freilaufenden Tieren schützten. Hinzu kommt eine Sockelzone, die bei den späteren Tempeln (ab ca. 950) mehrfach gestuft ist und durchaus nochmals 3 Meter hoch sein kann. Plattform und Sockel tragen natürlich auch zu einer 'Erhöhung' des aufstehenden Bauwerks im übertragenen Sinn bei.
Die Mehrzahl der Tempeleingänge sind nach Osten, also in Richtung der aufgehenden Sonne ausgerichtet, d. h. die Cella (garbhagriha) liegt im Westen. Bei zwei Tempeln ist es umgekehrt: sie orientieren sich nach Westen, d. h. in Richtung der untergehenden Sonne (Lalguan-Mahadeva-Tempel und Chaturbuja-Tempel). Beide Ausrichtungen sind bei indischen Tempeln seit Jahrhunderten möglich und üblich. Die vorderen zwei Begleitschreine des Lakshmana-Tempels liegen einander gegenüber und sind nach Süden bzw. Norden ausgerichtet.
WESTGRUPPE (Hindu-Tempel)
- Matangeshvara-Tempel (ca. 950)
- Varaha-Tempel (ca. 950)
- Lakshmana-Tempel (ca. 950)
- Devi-Tempel
- Vishvanatha-Tempel (ca. 1000)
- Nandi-Schrein
- Parvati-Schrein
- Jagadambi-Tempel
- Chitragupta-Tempel
- Kandariya-Mahadeva-Tempel (1. Hälfte 11. Jh.)
OSTGRUPPE (Jain-Tempel)
- Parsvanatha-Tempel (ca. 960)
- Adinatha-Tempel (ca. 1050)
- Shantinatha-Tempel
- Ghantai-Tempel (ca. 990)
EINZELTEMPEL (Hindu-Tempel)
- Chausath-Yogini-Tempel (ca. 875)
- Lalguan-Mahadeva-Tempel (ca. 920)
- Brahma-Tempel (ca. 930)
- Khakra-Math-Tempel (ca. 980)
- Vamana-Tempel (ca. 1050)
- Javari-Tempel (ca. 1100)
- Chaturbuja-Tempel (ca. 1120)
- Duladeo-Tempel (ca. 1120)
ARCHITEKTUR
Die Tempel von Khajuraho bieten die Möglichkeit, auf engstem Raum die Entwicklung der indischen Baukunst in einer Zeitspanne von etwa 200 Jahren zu verfolgen − von kleinen (wenig gegliederten, einräumigen und geschlossenen) Tempeln hin zu großen (stark gegliederten, mehrräumigen und offenen) Bauten. Auch die Höhe der Bauten erfährt während dieser Zeit eine enorme Steigerung. Gemeinsam ist nahezu allen Bauten (Ausnahme: Chausath-Yogini-Tempel), dass sie über Dachaufbauten (Shikhara-Türme oder Pyramidendächer) verfügen, die von gerippten amalaka-Steinen und kalasha-Krügen bekrönt werden.
FRÜHZEIT
Abgesehen vom Chausath-Yogini-Tempel, dem ältesten und vollkommen anderen baulichen Traditionen verpflichteten Tempelbau in Khajuraho, bestehen die frühen Tempel nur aus einer − von einem gestuften Pyramidendach bedeckten − Cella (garbhagriha), der im Fall des Brahma-Tempels noch ein Portalvorbau (antarala), im Fall des Varaha-Tempels und des Matangesvara-Tempels jeweils ein kleiner offener Vorraum (mandapa) vorgesetzt ist. Die Außenwände sind nur geringfügig gegliedert und überwiegend steinsichtig.
BLÜHTZEIT
Die Blütezeit der Tempelarchitektur in Khajuraho beginnt mit dem Lakshmana-Tempel (ca. 930−950), der wahrscheinlich vom Maladevi-Tempel in Gyaraspur und von früheren Tempelbauten in Rajasthan beeinflusst ist, die ihrerseits wiederum allesamt auf die beim Bau des Kalika-Mata-Tempels in Chittorgarh (ca. 700) erstmals entwickelten baulichen Innovationen zurückgeführt werden können. Diese sind im Wesentlichen: mehrere hintereinander liegende, aber harmonisch miteinander verbundenen Bauteile (mandapas, antarala und garbhagriha); gleiche Grundfläche von großer Vorhalle (mahamandapa) und Sanktumsbereich; Cella als eigenständiger Baukörper im Innern; Pfeiler − und nicht mehr Wände − als tragende Stützelemente für die Dachaufbauten − dadurch wurde es möglich, die Räume nach außen hin durch balkonähnliche Vorbauten zu öffnen; mehrfache Abstufung und Gliederung der verbliebenen Wandteile außen wie innen − dadurch treten sie gar nicht mehr als 'Wand' in Erscheinung; Fortsetzung der Außenwandgliederung im Dachaufbau.
Beim Lakshmana-Tempel ist die Cella als eigener, innenliegender Baukörper gestaltet und von einem Umgang (pradakshinapatha) umgeben. Der gesamte Sanktumsbereich sowie seine vier Nebenschreine werden − erstmals in Khajuraho − von steil und hoch aufragenden Shikhara-Türmen überhöht; die weniger wichtigen Vorhallen werden auch weiterhin von den insgesamt flacheren, pyramidenförmigen Dächern bedeckt, so dass eine architektonische Steigerung der Tempel − einem Gebirge durchaus vergleichbar − hin zur Cella erreicht wird.
Die wichtigsten Nachfolgebauten des Lakshmana-Tempels sind der Vishvanatha-Tempel (ca. 1000) und der Kandariya-Mahadeva-Tempel (ca. 1050), bei denen wegen der vielfältigen architektonischen Gliederungen und des dichten Skulpturenprogramms eine Stein- bzw. Wandsichtigkeit nicht mehr wahrzunehmen ist.
SKULPTUREN
Auch im Hinblick auf die Entwicklung der indischen Skulptur bieten die Tempel von Khajuraho einen Überblick über ca. 200 Jahre indischer Kunstgeschichte − von den in Architekturelemente eingebundenen und eher unbewegt und statisch erscheinenden Reliefdarstellungen der Frühzeit bis hin zu den beinahe freiplastisch gearbeiteten und durch ihre Posenvielfalt nahezu lebendig wirkenden Figuren.
FRÜHZEITLICHE SKULPTUREN
Die nur wenig gegliederten Außenwände der frühen Tempel von Khajuraho zeigen kaum figürlichen oder ornamentalen Schmuck. Dieser ist, noch stark reliefgebunden, auf die Portale (Lalguan-Mahadeva-Tempel, Brahma-Tempel) sowie auf einige Fensternischen (Matangeshvara-Tempel) beschränkt. Erotische Skulpturen sind in den frühen Tempeln noch nicht zu finden.
SKULPTUREN DER BLÜHTEZEIT
Auch hier ist es der Lakshmana-Tempel, der für Khajuraho neue Zeichen setzt: Während die Außenwände der Vorhallen nur wenig figürliche Reliefs zeigen, sind die Wände des Sanktums überreich mit Skulpturen geschmückt. Darunter finden sich Götterfiguren (devas oder devis), „schöne Mädchen“ (surasundaris) und Liebespaare (mithunas); auch die ersten erotischen Skulpturen sind in den unteren (erdnahen) Feldern der Mittelregister sowie im Figurenfries der Plattform zu sehen. Die mittleren Felder zeigen dagegen zärtliche Liebespaare mit kleineren Begleitfiguren, die oberen Götterfiguren. Eine Hierarchie der Figurenanordnung ist also deutlich wahrnehmbar. Bei den unmittelbaren Nachfolgebauten (Vishvanatha-Tempel, Jagadambi-Tempel und Kandariya-Mahadeva-Tempel) nimmt die Anzahl der Figuren und somit auch der erotischen Darstellungen zu.
Bei den Jain-Tempeln und den späteren Hindu-Tempeln sind kaum noch erotisch-sexuelle Darstellungen zu finden; hier überwiegt die Anzahl der Götterfiguren manchmal sogar die der „schönen Mädchen“.
ARCHÄOLOGISCHES MUSEUM
Zu den Sehenswürdigkeiten im Bereich des Tempelbezirks von Khajuraho gehört auch das im Ortskern gelegene Archäologische Museum (auch Rani Durgavati-Museum genannt). Es beherbergt einige sehr schöne Skulpturen, die im Rahmen der Ausgrabungs- und Restaurierungsarbeiten gefunden und hierher verbracht wurden, weil sie keinem der erhaltenen Tempelbauten direkt zuzuordnen waren.
WIKIPEDIA
dedicated in loving memory of Brian and Laura Birdsong, their spirit and love of animals will live on through the joy that all the children find in nature.
Brian: June 2nd 1981 – April 5th 1991.
Laura: May 30th 1984 – April 5th 1991.
Dedicated to the public in 1968, the Walter. H. Horning Tree Seed Orchard outside Portland, Oregon, has supported healthy trees for nearly 50 years. Thanks to the work completed at this preserve, the BLM and its partners have planted seeds to reforest areas with Douglas-fir, western white pine, sugar pine, western hemlock, western redcedar, and noble fir that will provide shade, recreation, and timber for many future generations to come.
(Photo: Matt Christenson/BLM/2017)