The extent of the pumping operation can be seen here with the lorries still taking cement from the remaining wagons. Two engineering trains are arriving on site this afternoon as have several pieces of track plant. Sheaf Street where the cement lorries are parked is closed tomorrow morning from 06:00 so I assume the remaining wagons which cannot be moved by rail will be lifted over the wall.

A nice day before a storm front is supposed to move in and drown our region in rain! Those mountains before you are the Cascade Range. I noticed many farmers are planting blueberries this year in parts of their farms, which is new to such a large extent in this valley.

One of the best sunsets i've witnessed in my life, surely for the intensity of the color... actually the red didn't end up becoming more and more red !! And that was awesome.

By the way colors here are straight out of camera which I hope has done justice to such a glorious moment.

I’ve even taken a pano, which I generally never do, because I don't like to think too much horizontally (as well as vertically), but in this case I couldn't help... the extent and vastness of the fiery sky has indeed imposed me what to do. I will post the panoramic multi-shot soon.

This is a self-timer shot taken on the summit ridge of Pointe Droset (2.917 m), Savoie, France.

 

Instagram @roberto.bertero

 

Personal Website

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©Roberto Bertero, All Rights Reserved. This image is not available for use on websites, blogs or other media without the explicit written permission of the photographer.

 

I've decided to upload all my Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown photos in three large batches. In order to do this, I'm spending a few days on the post-processing (generally cropping, straightening and sharpening). Since I won't be up to comment to any great extent until Tuesday, please don't feel obligated to comment on my stream. It wouldn't be fair to expect your comments.

 

I'm uploading batches for a couple of reasons. First, Explores are nice, but my main reason for being on flickr is to set up an archives for my extensive families, my personal friends and anyone else who wants to use my submissions. I've got a lot of old family stuff on my photostream, and there's going to be a lot more old stuff going up over the next few months. Secondly, I want to keep putting up current stuff. Only then can I see how I'm progressing. In order to put up new stuff, I've got to clear out the old stuff.

 

Flickr is a great tool that can be used for a lot more than getting Explores, although I have to admit that I'll be the last guy to turn them down.

 

Jamestown (originally also called "James Towne" or "Jamestowne") is located on the James River in what is currently James City County in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The site is about 40 miles (62 km) inland from the Atlantic Ocean and the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay and about 45 miles (70 km) downstream and southeast of the current state capital city of Richmond. Both the river and the settlement were named for King James I of England, who was on the throne at the time, granted the private proprietorship to the Virginia Company of London's enterprise.

 

The location at Jamestown Island was selected primarily because it offered a favorable strategic defensive position against other European forces which might approach by water. However, the colonists soon discovered that the swampy and isolated site was plagued by mosquitoes and tidal river water unsuitable for drinking, and offered limited opportunities for hunting and little space for farming. The area was also inhabited by Native Americans (American Indians).

The 3 points of Colonial Virginia's Historic Triangle, Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown are linked by the National Park Service's scenic Colonial Parkway.

The 3 points of Colonial Virginia's Historic Triangle, Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown are linked by the National Park Service's scenic Colonial Parkway.

 

Despite inspired leadership of John Smith, chaplain Robert Hunt and others, starvation, hostile relations with the Indians, and lack of profitable exports all threatened the survival of the Colony in the early years as the settlers and the Virginia Company of London each struggled. However, colonist John Rolfe introduced a strain of tobacco which was successfully exported in 1612, and the financial outlook for the colony became more favorable. Two years later, Rolfe married the young Indian woman Pocahontas, daughter of Wahunsunacock, Chief of the Powhatan Confederacy, and a period of relative peace with the Natives followed. In 1616, the Rolfes made a public relations trip to England, where Pocahontas was received as visiting royalty. Changes by the Virginia Company which became effective in 1619 attracted additional investments, also sowing the first seeds of democracy in the process with a locally-elected body which became the House of Burgesses, the first such representative legislative body in the New World.

 

Throughout the 17th century, Jamestown was the capital of the Virginia Colony. Several times during emergencies, the seat of government for the colony was shifted temporarily to nearby Middle Plantation, a fortified location on the high ridge approximately equidistant from the James and York Rivers on the Virginia Peninsula. Shortly after the Colony was finally granted a long-desired charter and established the new College of William and Mary at Middle Plantation, the capital of the Colony was permanently relocated nearby. In 1699, the new capital town was renamed Williamsburg, in honor of the current British king, William III.

 

After the capital was relocated, Jamestown began a gradual loss of prominence and eventually reverted to a few large farms. It again became a significant point for control of the James River during the American Civil War (1861–1865), and then slid back into seeming oblivion. Even the Jamestown Exposition of 1907 was held elsewhere, at a more accessible location at Sewell's Point, on Hampton Roads near Norfolk.

Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and her consort Prince Phillip inspect replica of Susan Constant at Jamestown Festival Park in Virginia on October 16, 1957

Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and her consort Prince Phillip inspect replica of Susan Constant at Jamestown Festival Park in Virginia on October 16, 1957

 

Beginning in 1893, 22.5 acres of the Jamestown site were acquired by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. A crucial sea wall was built in 1900 to protect the shoreline near the site of James Fort from further erosion. In the 1930s, the Colonial National Historical Park was established to protect and administer Jamestown, which was designated a National Historic Site. The U.S. National Park Service acquired the remaining 1,500 acres (6.1 km²) of Jamestown Island through eminent domain in 1934.

 

For the 350th anniversary in 1957, Jamestown itself was the site of renewed interest and a huge celebration. The National Park Service provided new access with the completion of the Colonial Parkway which led to Williamsburg, home of the restored capital of Colonial Williamsburg, and then on to Yorktown, the other two portions of Colonial Virginia's Historic Triangle. Major projects such as the Jamestown Festival Park were developed by non-profit, state and federal agencies. Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and Prince Philip attended. The 1957 event was a great success. Tourism became continuous with attractions regularly updated and enhanced.

 

The two major attractions at Jamestown are separate, but complementary to each other. The state-sponsored Jamestown Settlement near the entrance to Jamestown Island includes a recreated English Fort and Native American Village, extensive indoor and outdoor displays, and features the three popular replica ships. On Jamestown Island itself, the National Park Service operates Historic Jamestowne. Over a million artifacts have been recovered by the Jamestown Rediscovery project with ongoing archaeological work, including a number of exciting recent discoveries.

 

Early in the 21st century, in preparation for the Jamestown 2007 event commemorating America's 400th Anniversary, new accommodations, transportation facilities and attractions were planned. The celebration began in the Spring of 2006 with the sailing of a new replica Godspeed to six major East Coast U.S. cities, where several hundred thousand people viewed it. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip joined America's festivities on an official state visit to Jamestown in May 2007.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamestown,_Virginia

My edit (old slide) on LSL Ayr Extention tour how the photographers images may have looked back in the day when these beautiful locomotives were a common sight on the WCML.

 

86101 was one of three test-bed locomotives converted in the early 1970s from standard Class 86s to trial traction equipment for the upcoming Class 87s. Fitted with a Class 87-type transformer and bogies, the 86/1s saw front-line use on West Coast Main Line services until the late 1990s.

 

Purchased in 2005, restoration began in 2006, and the loco was subsequently returned to mainline condition. 86101 became the first preserved AC electric locomotive to operate on the main line on 15th March 2007, and has operated on railtours and in regular passenger service.

 

The loco was named "Sir William A Stanier FRS" at Liverpool on 27th October 1978, after much lobbying by the Loco Club of Great Britain, and retained the name until early 2005 when the plates were removed for safe keeping.

 

86101 was sold to Locomotive Services Limited (LSL) on 5th November 2019.

Hasselblad 503cx

Zeiss Planar 80/2,8 + extention tubes

Ilford FP 4+

Developed in Kodak HC-110B

 

Read more on my blog: shimmeringgrains.com/2020/05/10/perfect-imperfection/

 

I met him on Bandra Hill Road liked his look , his turban , his peaceful attitude and shot a few frames.

 

He belongs to the Sikh religion.

 

about Sikhism

 

Sikhism,[1] founded in fifteenth century Punjab on the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev and ten successive Sikh Gurus (the last one being the sacred text Guru Granth Sahib), is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world.[2] This system of religious philosophy and expression has been traditionally known as the Gurmat (literally the counsel of the gurus) or the Sikh Dharma. Sikhism originated from the word Sikh, which in turn comes from the Sanskrit root śiṣya meaning "disciple" or "learner", or śikṣa meaning "instruction".[3][4]

 

The principal belief of Sikhism is faith in waheguru—represented using the sacred symbol of ik ōaṅkār, the Universal God. Sikhism advocates the pursuit of salvation through disciplined, personal meditation on the name and message of God. A key distinctive feature of Sikhism is a non-anthropomorphic concept of God, to the extent that one can interpret God as the Universe itself. The followers of Sikhism are ordained to follow the teachings of the ten Sikh gurus, or enlightened leaders, as well as the holy scripture entitled the Gurū Granth Sāhib, which, along with the writings of six of the ten Sikh Gurus, includes selected works of many devotees from diverse socio-economic and religious backgrounds. The text was decreed by Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth guru, as the final guru of the Khalsa Panth. Sikhism's traditions and teachings are distinctively associated with the history, society and culture of the Punjab. Adherents of Sikhism are known as Sikhs (students or disciples) and number over 23 million across the world. Most Sikhs live in Punjab in India and, until India's partition, millions of Sikhs lived in what is now Pakistani Punjab.[5]

 

The origins of Sikhism lie in the teachings of Guru Nanak and his successors. The essence of Sikh teaching is summed up by Nanak in these words: "Realisation of Truth is higher than all else. Higher still is truthful living".[6] Sikhism believes in equality of all humans and rejects discrimination on the basis of caste, creed, and gender. Sikhism also does not attach any importance to asceticism as a means to attain salvation, but stresses on the need of leading life as a householder.

 

Sikhism is a monotheistic religion.[7][8] In Sikhism, God—termed Vāhigurū—is shapeless, timeless, and sightless: niraṅkār, akāl, and alakh. The beginning of the first composition of Sikh scripture is the figure "1"—signifying the universality of God. It states that God is omnipresent and infinite, and is signified by the term ēk ōaṅkār.[9] Sikhs believe that before creation, all that existed was God and Its hukam (will or order).[10] When God willed, the entire cosmos was created. From these beginnings, God nurtured "enticement and attachment" to māyā, or the human perception of reality.[11]

 

While a full understanding of God is beyond human beings,[9] Nanak described God as not wholly unknowable. God is omnipresent (sarav viāpak) in all creation and visible everywhere to the spiritually awakened. Nanak stressed that God must be seen from "the inward eye", or the "heart", of a human being: devotees must meditate to progress towards enlightenment. Guru Nanak Dev emphasized the revelation through meditation, as its rigorous application permits the existence of communication between God and human beings.[9] God has no gender in Sikhism, (though translations may incorrectly present a male God); indeed Sikhism teaches that God is "Nirankar" [Niran meaning "without" and kar meaning "form", hence "without form"]. In addition, Nanak wrote that there are many worlds on which God has created life.[12]

[edit] Pursuing salvation and khalsa

A Sikh man at the Harimandir Sahib

 

Nanak's teachings are founded not on a final destination of heaven or hell, but on a spiritual union with God which results in salvation.[13] The chief obstacles to the attainment of salvation are social conflicts and an attachment to worldly pursuits, which commit men and women to an endless cycle of birth—a concept known as reincarnation.

 

Māyā—defined as illusion or "unreality"—is one of the core deviations from the pursuit of God and salvation: people are distracted from devotion by worldly attractions which give only illusive satisfaction. However, Nanak emphasised māyā as not a reference to the unreality of the world, but of its values. In Sikhism, the influences of ego, anger, greed, attachment, and lust—known as the Five Evils—are believed to be particularly pernicious. The fate of people vulnerable to the Five Evils is separation from God, and the situation may be remedied only after intensive and relentless devotion.[14]

 

Nanak described God's revelation—the path to salvation—with terms such as nām (the divine Name) and śabad (the divine Word) to emphasise the totality of the revelation. Nanak designated the word guru (meaning teacher) as the voice of God and the source and guide for knowledge and salvation.[15] Salvation can be reached only through rigorous and disciplined devotion to God. Nanak distinctly emphasised the irrelevance of outward observations such as rites, pilgrimages, or asceticism. He stressed that devotion must take place through the heart, with the spirit and the soul.

 

A key practice to be pursued is nām: remembrance of the divine Name. The verbal repetition of the name of God or a sacred syllable is an established practice in religious traditions in India, but Nanak's interpretation emphasized inward, personal observance. Nanak's ideal is the total exposure of one's being to the divine Name and a total conforming to Dharma or the "Divine Order". Nanak described the result of the disciplined application of nām simraṇ as a "growing towards and into God" through a gradual process of five stages. The last of these is sac khaṇḍ (The Realm of Truth)—the final union of the spirit with God.[15]

 

Nanak stressed now kirat karō: that a Sikh should balance work, worship, and charity, and should defend the rights of all creatures, and in particular, fellow human beings. They are encouraged to have a chaṛdī kalā, or optimistic, view of life. Sikh teachings also stress the concept of sharing—vaṇḍ chakkō—through the distribution of free food at Sikh gurdwaras (laṅgar), giving charitable donations, and working for the good of the community and others (sēvā).

[edit] The ten gurus and religious authority

Main article: Sikh Gurus

A rare Tanjore-style painting from the late 19th century depicting the ten Sikh Gurus with Bhai Bala and Bhai Mardana.

 

The term guru comes from the Sanskrit gurū, meaning teacher, guide, or mentor. The traditions and philosophy of Sikhism were established by ten specific gurus from 1499 to 1708. Each guru added to and reinforced the message taught by the previous, resulting in the creation of the Sikh religion. Nanak was the first guru and appointed a disciple as successor. Gobind Singh was the final guru in human form. Before his death, Gobind Singh decreed that the Gurū Granth Sāhib would be the final and perpetual guru of the Sikhs.[16] The Sikhs believe that the spirit of Nanak was passed from one guru to the next, " just as the light of one lamp, which lights another and does not diminish ",[17] and is also mentioned in their holy book.

  

After Nanak's passing, the most important phase in the development of Sikhism came with the third successor, Amar Das. Nanak's teachings emphasised the pursuit of salvation; Amar Das began building a cohesive community of followers with initiatives such as sanctioning distinctive ceremonies for birth, marriage, and death. Amar Das also established the manji (comparable to a diocese) system of clerical supervision.[15]

The interior of the Akal Takht

 

Amar Das's successor and son-in-law Ram Das founded the city of Amritsar, which is home of the Harimandir Sahib and regarded widely as the holiest city for all Sikhs. When Ram Das's youngest son Arjan succeeded him, the line of male gurus from the Sodhi Khatri family was established: all succeeding gurus were direct descendants of this line. Arjun Mathur was responsible for compiling the Sikh scriptures. Guru Arjan Sahib was captured by Mughal authorities who were suspicious and hostile to the religious order he was developing.[18] His persecution and death inspired his successors to promote a military and political organization of Sikh communities to defend themselves against the attacks of Mughal forces.

 

The Sikh gurus established a mechanism which allowed the Sikh religion to react as a community to changing circumstances. The sixth guru, Har Gobind, was responsible for the creation of the concept of Akal Takht (throne of the timeless one), which serves as the supreme decision-making centre of Sikhdom and sits opposite the Darbar Sahib. The Sarbat Ḵẖālsā (a representative portion of the Khalsa Panth) historically gathers at the Akal Takht on special festivals such as Vaisakhi or Diwali and when there is a need to discuss matters that affect the entire Sikh nation. A gurmatā (literally, guru's intention) is an order passed by the Sarbat Ḵẖālsā in the presence of the Gurū Granth Sāhib. A gurmatā may only be passed on a subject that affects the fundamental principles of Sikh religion; it is binding upon all Sikhs.[19] The term hukamnāmā (literally, edict or royal order) is often used interchangeably with the term gurmatā. However, a hukamnāmā formally refers to a hymn from the Gurū Granth Sāhib which is given as an order to Sikhs.

[edit] History

Main article: History of Sikhism

 

Nanak (1469–1538), the founder of Sikhism, was born in the village of Rāi Bhōi dī Talwandī, now called Nankana Sahib (in present-day Pakistan).[20] His father, Mehta Kalu was a Patwari, an accountant of land revenue in the employment of Rai Bular Bhatti, the area landlord. Nanak's mother was Tripta Devi and he had one older sister, Nanaki. His parents were Khatri Hindus of the Bedi clan. As a boy, Nanak was fascinated by religion, and his desire to explore the mysteries of life eventually led him to leave home and take missionary journeys.

 

In his early teens, Nanak caught the attention of the local landlord Rai Bular Bhatti, who was moved by his intellect and divine qualities. Rai Bular was witness to many incidents in which Nanak enchanted him and as a result Rai Bular and Nanak's sister Bibi Nanki, became the first persons to recognise the divine qualities in Nanak. Both of them then encouraged and supported Nanak to study and travel. Sikh tradition states that at the age of thirty, Nanak went missing and was presumed to have drowned after going for one of his morning baths to a local stream called the Kali Bein. One day, he declared: "There is no Hindu, there is no Muslim" (in Punjabi, "nā kōi hindū nā kōi musalmān"). It was from this moment that Nanak would begin to spread the teachings of what was then the beginning of Sikhism.[21] Although the exact account of his itinerary is disputed, he is widely acknowledged to have made four major journeys, spanning thousands of kilometres, the first tour being east towards Bengal and Assam, the second south towards Tamil Nadu, the third north towards Kashmir, Ladakh, and Tibet, and the final tour west towards Baghdad and Mecca.[22]

 

Nanak was married to Sulakhni, the daughter of Moolchand Chona, a rice trader from the town of Bakala. They had two sons. The elder son, Sri Chand, was an ascetic, and he came to have a considerable following of his own, known as the Udasis. The younger son, Lakshmi Das, on the other hand, was totally immersed in worldly life. To Nanak, who believed in the ideal of rāj maiṁ jōg (detachment in civic life), both his sons were unfit to carry on the Guruship.

[edit] Growth of the Sikh community

 

In 1538, Nanak chose his disciple Lahiṇā, a Khatri of the Trehan clan, as a successor to the guruship rather than either of his sons. Lahiṇā was named Angad Dev and became the second guru of the Sikhs.[23] Nanak conferred his choice at the town of Kartarpur on the banks of the river Ravi, where Nanak had finally settled down after his travels. Though Sri Chand was not an ambitious man, the Udasis believed that the Guruship should have gone to him, since he was a man of pious habits in addition to being Nanak's son. They refused to accept Angad's succession. On Nanak's advice, Angad shifted from Kartarpur to Khadur, where his wife Khivi and children were living, until he was able to bridge the divide between his followers and the Udasis. Angad continued the work started by Nanak and is widely credited for standardising the Gurmukhī script as used in the sacred scripture of the Sikhs.

 

Amar Das, a Khatri of the Bhalla clan, became the third Sikh guru in 1552 at the age of 73. Goindval became an important centre for Sikhism during the guruship of Amar Das. He preached the principle of equality for women by prohibiting purdah and sati. Amar Das also encouraged the practice of langar and made all those who visited him attend laṅgar before they could speak to him.[24] In 1567, Emperor Akbar sat with the ordinary and poor people of Punjab to have laṅgar. Amar Das also trained 146 apostles of which 52 were women, to manage the rapid expansion of the religion.[25] Before he died in 1574 aged 95, he appointed his son-in-law Jēṭhā, a Khatri of the Sodhi clan, as the fourth Sikh guru.

 

Jēṭhā became Ram Das and vigorously undertook his duties as the new guru. He is responsible for the establishment of the city of Ramdaspur later to be named Amritsar. Before Ramdaspur, Amritsar was known as Guru Da Chakk. In 1581, Arjan Dev—youngest son of the fourth guru—became the fifth guru of the Sikhs. In addition to being responsible for building the Darbar/Harimandir Sahib (called the Golden Temple), he prepared the Sikh sacred text known as the Ādi Granth (literally the first book) and included the writings of the first five gurus. In 1606, for refusing to make changes to the Granth and for supporting an unsuccessful contender to the throne, he was tortured and killed by the Mughal Emperor, Jahangir.[26]

[edit] Political advancement

 

Hargobind, became the sixth guru of the Sikhs. He carried two swords—one for spiritual and the other for temporal reasons (known as mīrī and pīrī in Sikhism).[27] Sikhs grew as an organized community and under the 10th Guru the Sikhs developed a trained fighting force to defend their independence. In 1644, Har Rai became guru followed by Harkrishan, the boy guru, in 1661. No hymns composed by these three gurus are included in the Sikh holy book.[28]

 

Tegh Bahadur became guru in 1665 and led the Sikhs until 1675. Teg Bahadur was executed by Aurangzeb for helping to protect Hindus, after a delegation of Kashmiri Pandits came to him for help when the Emperor condemned them to death for failing to convert to Islam.[29] He was succeeded by his son, Gobind Rai who was just nine years old at the time of his father's death. Gobind Rai further militarised his followers, and was baptised by the Pañj Piārē when he formed the Khalsa on 13 April 1699. From here on in he was known as Gobind Singh.

 

From the time of Nanak, when it was a loose collection of followers who focused entirely on the attainment of salvation and God, the Sikh community had significantly transformed. Even though the core Sikh religious philosophy was never affected, the followers now began to develop a political identity. Conflict with Mughal authorities escalated during the lifetime of Teg Bahadur and Gobind Singh. The latter founded the Khalsa in 1699. The Khalsa is a disciplined community that combines its religious purpose and goals with political and military duties.[30] After Aurangzeb killed four of his sons, Gobind Singh sent Aurangzeb the Zafarnamah (Notification/Epistle of Victory).

 

Shortly before his death, Gobind Singh ordered that the Gurū Granth Sāhib (the Sikh Holy Scripture), would be the ultimate spiritual authority for the Sikhs and temporal authority would be vested in the Khalsa Panth—the Sikh Nation/Community.[16] The first scripture was compiled and edited by the fifth guru, Arjan Dev, in 1604.

 

A former ascetic was charged by Gobind Singh with the duty of punishing those who had persecuted the Sikhs. After the guru's death, Baba Banda Singh Bahadur became the leader of the Sikh army and was responsible for several attacks on the Mughal empire. He was executed by the emperor Jahandar Shah after refusing the offer of a pardon if he converted to Islam.[31]

 

The Sikh community's embrace of military and political organisation made it a considerable regional force in medieval India and it continued to evolve after the demise of the gurus. After the death of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur, a Sikh Confederacy of Sikh warrior bands known as misls formed. With the decline of the Mughal empire, a Sikh Empire arose in the Punjab under Maharaja Ranjit Singh, with its capital in Lahore and limits reaching the Khyber Pass and the borders of China. The order, traditions and discipline developed over centuries culminated at the time of Ranjit Singh to give rise to the common religious and social identity that the term "Sikhism" describes.[32]

 

After the death of Ranjit Singh, the Sikh Empire fell into disorder and was eventually annexed by the United Kingdom after the hard-fought Anglo-Sikh Wars. This brought the Punjab under the British Raj. Sikhs formed the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee and the Shiromani Akali Dal to preserve Sikhs' religious and political organization a quarter of a century later. With the partition of India in 1947, thousands of Sikhs were killed in violence and millions were forced to leave their ancestral homes in West Punjab.[33] Sikhs faced initial opposition from the Government in forming a linguistic state that other states in India were afforded. The Akali Dal started a non-violence movement for Sikh and Punjabi rights. Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale emerged as a leader of the Bhindran-Mehta Jatha—which assumed the name of Damdami Taksal in 1977 to promote a peaceful solution of the problem. In June 1984, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ordered the Indian army to launch Operation Blue Star to remove Bhindranwale and his followers from the Darbar Sahib. Bhindranwale, and a large number of innocent pilgrims were killed during the army's operations. In October, Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards. The assassination was followed by the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots massacre[34] and Hindu-Sikh conflicts in Punjab, as a reaction to the assassination and Operation Blue Star.

[edit] Scripture

 

There are two primary sources of scripture for the Sikhs: the Gurū Granth Sāhib and the Dasam Granth. The Gurū Granth Sāhib may be referred to as the Ādi Granth—literally, The First Volume—and the two terms are often used synonymously. Here, however, the Ādi Granth refers to the version of the scripture created by Arjan Dev in 1604. The Gurū Granth Sāhib refers to the final version of the scripture created by Gobind Singh.

[edit] Adi Granth

Main article: Ādi Granth

 

The Ādi Granth was compiled primarily by Bhai Gurdas under the supervision of Arjan Dev between the years 1603 and 1604.[35] It is written in the Gurmukhī script, which is a descendant of the Laṇḍā script used in the Punjab at that time.[36] The Gurmukhī script was standardised by Angad Dev, the second guru of the Sikhs, for use in the Sikh scriptures and is thought to have been influenced by the Śāradā and Devanāgarī scripts. An authoritative scripture was created to protect the integrity of hymns and teachings of the Sikh gurus and selected bhagats. At the time, Arjan Sahib tried to prevent undue influence from the followers of Prithi Chand, the guru's older brother and rival.[37]

 

The original version of the Ādi Granth is known as the kartārpur bīṛ and is claimed to be held by the Sodhi family of Kartarpur.[citation needed] (In fact the original volume was burned by Ahmad Shah Durrani's army in 1757 when they burned the whole town of Kartarpur.)[citation needed]

[edit] Guru Granth Sahib

Gurū Granth Sāhib folio with Mūl Mantra

Main article: Gurū Granth Sāhib

 

The final version of the Gurū Granth Sāhib was compiled by Gobind Singh in 1678. It consists of the original Ādi Granth with the addition of Teg Bahadur's hymns. It was decreed by Gobind Singh that the Granth was to be considered the eternal guru of all Sikhs; however, this tradition is not mentioned either in 'Guru Granth Sahib' or in 'Dasam Granth'.

 

Punjabi: ਸੱਬ ਸਿੱਖਣ ਕੋ ਹੁਕਮ ਹੈ ਗੁਰੂ ਮਾਨਯੋ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ।

Transliteration: Sabb sikkhaṇ kō hukam hai gurū mānyō granth.

English: All Sikhs are commanded to take the Granth as Guru.

 

It contains compositions by the first five gurus, Teg Bahadur and just one śalōk (couplet) from Gobind Singh.[38] It also contains the traditions and teachings of sants (saints) such as Kabir, Namdev, Ravidas, and Sheikh Farid along with several others.[32]

 

The bulk of the scripture is classified into rāgs, with each rāg subdivided according to length and author. There are 31 main rāgs within the Gurū Granth Sāhib. In addition to the rāgs, there are clear references to the folk music of Punjab. The main language used in the scripture is known as Sant Bhāṣā, a language related to both Punjabi and Hindi and used extensively across medieval northern India by proponents of popular devotional religion.[30] The text further comprises over 5000 śabads, or hymns, which are poetically constructed and set to classical form of music rendition, can be set to predetermined musical tāl, or rhythmic beats.

A group of Sikh musicians at the Golden Temple complex

 

The Granth begins with the Mūl Mantra, an iconic verse created by Nanak:

 

Punjabi: ੴ ਸਤਿ ਨਾਮੁ ਕਰਤਾ ਪੁਰਖੁ ਨਿਰਭਉ ਨਿਰਵੈਰੁ ਅਕਾਲ ਮੂਰਤਿ ਅਜੂਨੀ ਸੈਭੰ ਗੁਰ ਪ੍ਰਸਾਦਿ ॥

ISO 15919 transliteration: Ika ōaṅkāra sati nāmu karatā purakhu nirabha'u niravairu akāla mūrati ajūnī saibhaṅ gura prasādi.

Simplified transliteration: Ik ōaṅkār sat nām kartā purkh nirbha'u nirvair akāl mūrat ajūnī saibhaṅ gur prasād.

English: One Universal Creator God, The Name Is Truth, Creative Being Personified, No Fear, No Hatred, Image Of The Timeless One, Beyond Birth, Self Existent, By Guru's Grace.

 

All text within the Granth is known as gurbānī. Gurbānī, according to Nanak, was revealed by God directly, and the authors wrote it down for the followers. The status accorded to the scripture is defined by the evolving interpretation of the concept of gurū. In the Sant tradition of Nanak, the guru was literally the word of God. The Sikh community soon transferred the role to a line of men who gave authoritative and practical expression to religious teachings and traditions, in addition to taking socio-political leadership of Sikh adherents. Gobind Singh declared an end of the line of human gurus, and now the Gurū Granth Sāhib serves as the eternal guru, with its interpretation vested with the community.[30]

[edit] Dasam Granth

Main article: Dasam Granth

A frontispiece to the Dasam Granth

 

The Dasam Granth (formally dasvēṁ pātśāh kī granth or The Book of the Tenth Master) is an eighteenth-century collection of poems by Gobind Singh. It was compiled in the shape of a book (granth) by Bhai Mani Singh some 13 to 26 years after Guru Gobind Singh Ji left this world for his heavenly abode.

 

From 1895 to 1897, different scholars and theologians assembled at the Akal Takht, Amritsar, to study the 32 printed Dasam Granths and prepare the authoritative version. They met at the Akal Takhat at Amritsar, and held formal discussions in a series of meetings between 13 June 1895 and 16 February 1896. A preliminary report entitled Report Sodhak (revision) Committee Dasam Patshah de Granth Sahib Di was sent to Sikh scholars and institutions, inviting their opinion. A second document, Report Dasam Granth di Sudhai Di was brought out on 11 February 1898. Basing its conclusions on a study of the old handwritten copies of the Dasam Granth preserved at Sri Takht Sahib at Patna and in other Sikh gurudwaras, this report affirmed that the Holy Volume was compiled at Anandpur Sahib in 1698[3] . Further re-examinations and reviews took place in 1931, under the aegis of the Darbar Sahib Committee of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee. They, too, vindicated the earlier conclusion (agreeing that it was indeed the work of the Guru) and its findings have since been published.

[edit] Janamsakhis

Main article: Janamsākhīs

 

The Janamsākhīs (literally birth stories), are writings which profess to be biographies of Nanak. Although not scripture in the strictest sense, they provide an interesting look at Nanak's life and the early start of Sikhism. There are several—often contradictory and sometimes unreliable—Janamsākhīs and they are not held in the same regard as other sources of scriptural knowledge.

[edit] Observances

 

Observant Sikhs adhere to long-standing practices and traditions to strengthen and express their faith. The daily recitation from memory of specific passages from the Gurū Granth Sāhib, especially the Japu (or Japjī, literally chant) hymns is recommended immediately after rising and bathing. Family customs include both reading passages from the scripture and attending the gurdwara (also gurduārā, meaning the doorway to God; sometimes transliterated as gurudwara). There are many gurdwaras prominently constructed and maintained across India, as well as in almost every nation where Sikhs reside. Gurdwaras are open to all, regardless of religion, background, caste, or race.

 

Worship in a gurdwara consists chiefly of singing of passages from the scripture. Sikhs will commonly enter the temple, touch the ground before the holy scripture with their foreheads, and make an offering. The recitation of the eighteenth century ardās is also customary for attending Sikhs. The ardās recalls past sufferings and glories of the community, invoking divine grace for all humanity.[39]

 

The most sacred shrine is the Harimandir Sahib in Amritsar, famously known as the Golden Temple. Groups of Sikhs regularly visit and congregate at the Harimandir Sahib. On specific occasions, groups of Sikhs are permitted to undertake a pilgrimage to Sikh shrines in the province of Punjab in Pakistan, especially at Nankana Sahib and other Gurdwaras. Other places of interest to Sikhism in Pakistan includes the samādhī (place of cremation) of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Lahore.

[edit] Sikh festivals

 

Festivals in Sikhism mostly centre around the lives of the Gurus and Sikh martyrs. The SGPC, the Sikh organisation in charge of upkeep of the gurdwaras, organises celebrations based on the new Nanakshahi calendar. This calendar is highly controversial among Sikhs and is not universally accepted. Several festivals (Hola Mohalla, Diwali, and Nanak's birthday) continue to be celebrated using the Hindu calendar. Sikh festivals include the following:

 

* Gurpurabs are celebrations or commemorations based on the lives of the Sikh gurus. They tend to be either birthdays or celebrations of Sikh martyrdom. All ten Gurus have Gurpurabs on the Nanakshahi calendar, but it is Guru Nanak Dev and Guru Gobind Singh who have a gurpurab that is widely celebrated in Gurdwaras and Sikh homes. The martyrdoms are also known as a shaheedi Gurpurab, which mark the martyrdom anniversary of Guru Arjan Dev and Guru Tegh Bahadur.

* Vaisakhi or Baisakhi normally occurs on 13 April and marks the beginning of the new spring year and the end of the harvest. Sikhs celebrate it because on Vaisakhi in 1699, the tenth guru, Gobind Singh, laid down the Foundation of the Khalsa an Independent Sikh Identity.

* Bandi Chhor Divas or Diwali celebrates Hargobind's release from the Gwalior Fort, with several innocent Hindu kings who were also imprisoned by Jahangir, on 26 October, 1619.

* Hola Mohalla occurs the day after Holi and is when the Khalsa Panth gather at Anandpur and display their warrior skills, including fighting and riding.

 

[edit] Ceremonies and customs

The anand kāraj (Sikh marriage) ceremony

 

Nanak taught that rituals, religious ceremonies, or idol worship is of little use and Sikhs are discouraged from fasting or going on pilgrimages.[40] However, during the period of the later gurus, and owing to increased institutionalisation of the religion, some ceremonies and rites did arise. Sikhism is not a proselytizing religion and most Sikhs do not make active attempts to gain converts. However, converts to Sikhism are welcomed, although there is no formal conversion ceremony. The morning and evening prayers take about two hours a day, starting in the very early morning hours. The first morning prayer is Guru Nanak's Jap Ji. Jap, meaning "recitation", refers to the use of sound, as the best way of approaching the divine. Like combing hair, hearing and reciting the sacred word is used as a way to comb all negative thoughts out of the mind. The second morning prayer is Guru Gobind Singh's universal Jaap Sahib. The Guru addresses God as having no form, no country, and no religion but as the seed of seeds, sun of suns, and the song of songs. The Jaap Sahib asserts that God is the cause of conflict as well as peace, and of destruction as well as creation. Devotees learn that there is nothing outside of God's presence, nothing outside of God's control. Devout Sikhs are encouraged to begin the day with private meditations on the name of God.

 

Upon a child's birth, the Guru Granth Sāhib is opened at a random point and the child is named using the first letter on the top left-hand corner of the left page. All boys are given the middle name or surname Singh, and all girls are given the middle name or surname Kaur.[41] Sikhs are joined in wedlock through the anand kāraj ceremony. Sikhs are required to marry when they are of a sufficient age (child marriage is taboo), and without regard for the future spouse's caste or descent. The marriage ceremony is performed in the company of the Guru Granth Sāhib; around which the couple circles four times. After the ceremony is complete, the husband and wife are considered "a single soul in two bodies."[42]

 

According to Sikh religious rites, neither husband nor wife is permitted to divorce. A Sikh couple that wishes to divorce may be able to do so in a civil court—but this is not condoned.[43] Upon death, the body of a Sikh is usually cremated. If this is not possible, any means of disposing the body may be employed. The kīrtan sōhilā and ardās prayers are performed during the funeral ceremony (known as antim sanskār).[44]

[edit] Baptism and the Khalsa

A kaṛā, kaṅghā and kirpān.

 

Khalsa (meaning pure) is the name given by Gobind Singh to all Sikhs who have been baptised or initiated by taking ammrit in a ceremony called ammrit sañcār. The first time that this ceremony took place was on Vaisakhi, which fell on 29 March 1698/1699 at Anandpur Sahib in Punjab. It was on that occasion that Gobind Singh baptised the Pañj Piārē who in turn baptised Gobind Singh himself.

 

Baptised Sikhs are bound to wear the Five Ks (in Punjabi known as pañj kakkē or pañj kakār), or articles of faith, at all times. The tenth guru, Gobind Singh, ordered these Five Ks to be worn so that a Sikh could actively use them to make a difference to their own and to others' spirituality. The 5 items are: kēs (uncut hair), kaṅghā (small comb), kaṛā (circular iron bracelet), kirpān (dagger), and kacchā (special undergarment). The Five Ks have both practical and symbolic purposes.[45]

[edit] Sikh people

Main article: Sikh

Further information: Sikhism by country

Punjabi Sikh family from Punjab, India

 

Worldwide, there are 25.8 million Sikhs and approximately 75% of Sikhs live in the Indian state of Punjab, where they constitute about 60% of the state's population. Even though there are a large number of Sikhs in the world, certain countries have not recognised Sikhism as a major religion and Sikhism has no relation to Hinduism. Large communities of Sikhs live in the neighboring states, and large communities of Sikhs can be found across India. However, Sikhs only make up about 2% of the Indian population.

 

In addition to social divisions, there is a misperception that there are a number of Sikh sectarian groups[clarification needed], such as Namdharis and Nirankaris. Nihangs tend to have little difference in practice and are considered the army of Sikhism. There is also a sect known as Udasi, founded by Sri Chand who were initially part of Sikhism but later developed into a monastic order.

 

Sikh Migration beginning from the 19th century led to the creation of significant communities in Canada (predominantly in Brampton, along with Malton in Ontario and Surrey in British Columbia), East Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, the United Kingdom and more recently, Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Western Europe. Smaller populations of Sikhs are found in Mauritius, Malaysia, Fiji, Nepal, China, Pakistan, Afganistan, Iraq and many other countries

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikhism.

   

The channel marker

 

This one is what attracted me to the structure in the first place, the extent of the rust showing how high the tide reaches & the rather splendid clouds of course

For Macro Monday - theme "Happy Ten Years"

Extention from concept of the daily light & shadow in Autumn, after explore the " rainy night" ,"dream light " , "mysterious light " & "cold night" , for the Series V, I am more interest about the contrast of light & shadow , and the light in between the noisy & calm space. Here are my presentation. Kindly advise what you thought.

189,488 items / 1,493,159 views

  

Marc De Clercq is a lover of Humanity , a very low profile human being a great photographer but hates being photographed , and he tolerates me to some extent as I blog his soul and bring it alive on the Internet.

 

I dont do it for money or to gain and ingratiate myself with him , he is million light years a much better photographer than me, I am basically a point and shoot artist.

 

Once Marc did get upset with me at Mahim and brushed me off for asking someone for taking my picture with him , though it hurt me immensely I forgave him the snub.. and we are both close to Laxmi Narayan Tripathi his very dear friend my Hijra Guru.

 

Marc shoots hijras transgender and recently began shooting living with the Dam Madar Malangs and Malang is not just a Sufi spirituality it is a state of mind too..

 

Like being called Mastan , Mastan is a spiritually satisfied soul... I am called a Mastan by the Rafaees body piercing ascetic of India.

 

I have for over ten years or perhaps much less documented the Chancawalli Rafaees , and lived with them , followed them from one Urus to the next , it was the Chancawalli Peer late Sikandarwali Bawa who introduced me to Haji Malang and later I saw Ajmer Sharif very late in life.

 

I am not a Sufi adherent but I have their peaceful mindset, I prefer them a million times than the neo Muslim .. adherent of Wahabbism or any similar school of thought.. I distance myself from any Islamic school that denigrates anyone who is a believer of Ahle Bayt... nothing more nothing less and I would rather eat dead flesh than eat or drink water from the hands of such man that kills another Muslim for being a lesser Muslim than him..

 

Well back to Marc..at my house there are two photographers that are as close to our family one is my mentor Dr Glenn Losack MD American full blooded .Jew born bred in Brooklyn and the other Marc De Clercq from Ghent Belgium.

  

Marc too likes my family and Marziya my photo shooting grand daughter 3 and a half year old gets along with Marc like peanut and butter.

 

They have an amazing tuning is all I can say..

 

Marziya has met some of the finest photographers at our house and is our in house photographer for the welcoming guests .

 

Marc has walked with the Dam Madar Malangs this year too from Delhi to Ajmer on foot rains heat storm, braving all the odds and is now considered a Malang himself..

 

He speaks fluent Urdu and Malang slang..

 

Shooting Marc shooting pictures is learning the art of Unlearning photography, when Marc shoots pictures even his left hand does not know that his right hand is holding the camera so I shoot him without him knowing that I am shooting him..

 

I honed my ability to shoot pictures shooting these guys .

 

Because we bloggers are point shoot photo artists heavy duty cameras or celebrity photographers dont intimidate us we are bloggers who are not into showing off or competitive photography or fucked awards the government of India gives you when you are an inch closer away from your grave.. and this is not to insult or humiliate Ms Vyarawala or Mr KG Maheshwariji ..but a fact of apathy of life and achievements of photographers unsung who died in penury and need of care.

  

So I trained my grand daughter the worlds youngest street photographer by shooting eminent photographers who come to my house , by shooting beggars hijras and urchins on the street...

 

And Marziya has yet to shoot Dr Glenn Losack MD her god uncle mentor and Guru too..

 

Marziyas Hanukkah present from Glenn was the Nikon D 80 she has been using since the age of 2.. in humility and gratitude...

      

Zebra Jumping Spider (Salticus scenics) on a pink garden rose

 

50mm reversed with 68mm of extention tubes - f/16 1/200th sec - hand held + flash

 

www.peterbrooksphotography.co.uk

Alternate choice for Macro Monday

Studio105.no - A Photography Blog for the LoLs - © Jon Schioldborg Baglo or my Instagram

 

1/40000s Macro Nikon D90, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4, Nikon SB-700, Kenko 12mm Extention Tube

At Glimmeboda Farm, in the east part of Scania, Sweden, the character of the 19th century and the early 20th century has been preserved to a great extent.

From 1790 and well into the 20th century, the farm was owned by only three generations.

This has contributed to the fact that much has remained of the old, and the influence from more modern times has been small. Tools, furniture and utensils, long associated with the site, have been retained.

Already in the 1920s, attention was drawn to the farm's genuine character. A survey of the farm was made, it gave an insight into how the farm had functioned way back in time.

 

Glimmeboda Farm is owned by the Albo County Local History Association, which has maintained the farm as a local history museum since 1989.

The farm includes an archive of documents, including two accounting and diaries that provide an insight into daily life here in the late 18th century and into the 1840s.

Poush Shongkranti (Shakrain) 2014

Model: Samrat Faisal Khan

For Macro Monday - January 14 2019 - Hobby

 

Tuner on a cigar box ukelele made by my husband. I'm trying to learn to play and making the instruments is a hobby of his.

I was faffing around this morning trying to decide what to do with this smelly bag before going to the hairdresser with camera in the boot of the car. When I came out from there the clouds descended to the extent I needed an ISO of 1600 to take pics of the Swansea Canal, so I'm choosing this as my PoTd instead.

Time Ticking..

Written by e5ty Fellah (candle of hope)

I’m sure you all noticed how fast time is ticking, or should I say how fast time is running.. I mean you wake up in the morning do a couple of things and when you check the clock you realize that almost 4 hours have passed while you did only a few things..

subhanAllah..

TO be honest, it is scaring me a lot.. to the extent that at times I can’t sleep at night from fear.. Fear of what?

Continue reading and you will know why..

As we know that time passing by fast is one of the signs of the hours, signs that show us how close the Day of Judgment is.

Our beloved prophet – Peace Be Upon him – mentioned that from the signs of the hours, the time will pass fast.. To the extent that a year would seem like a month, a month like a week, a week like a day and a day like a couple of hours..

 

Haven’t you all realized that this is what’s happening now?

All this proof yet people still have doubts that Islam is the true religion of all humans..

 

I remember when I used to tell my sis.. “When will you give birth to your child we are all excited” and subhanAllah two months have passed since she gave birth..

I remember telling her those words as if it was just yesterday..

SubhanAllah..

I remember when I started my summer course.. SubhanAllah, as if it was just yesterday..

 

Time is ticking too fast.. We are growing old fast..

What have we prepared for our hereafter?

There is not much time left..

What scares me the most, is that I know that almost all of the signs of the hours have occurred and I’m still not ready to face Allah.. I have a lot of things that I need to do, actually MUST do yet I have many obstacles.. but inshaALlah I will try my best to achieve it all ..

Stop wasting your times, specially in these coming days.. Because we are losing track of time.. so please seize every second..

May Allah have mercy on all Muslims..

copied from her site : www.candle-of-hope.com

I'm still impressed with my senioresque buddy Ben and, to a lesser extent, myself, for managing to climb down to this vantage point. The walking path and stairs were covered in ice. Normally, I wouldn't risk falling and breaking something while trying to get to the lower portions of this area, but as I shot a few photos from the upper deck, perfectly happy with where I was, Ben was busy testing the (very much frozen) waters, so to speak. Like an unsupervised chi-, no, 57 year old, he wandered off, doing a penguin walk on the ice and holding onto the guard rail. He did this three times, getting further down the path each time before returning to me and talking about how bad the conditions are. He still urged me to try to go down, so I did. We both went down into the gorge, valley, ravine, whatever and didn't manage to kill or injure ourselves. We even met another photographer down there! In fact, a number of people slip, slip, slide!-ed their way down there to get photos. Sure, seeing other people do it stole some of our own glory, but it was nice to conquer the negative voices that usually keep me in safer places...with less wonderful views.

1Z29 Crewe to Glasgow Central. The Ayr Extention. LSL's Class 86 in Intercity Swallow livery sits on blocks at Glasgow Central with a charter to Ayr (Due to the fire damaged Ayr station the charter only went as far as Brassie Jn)

Vlinder, Nessaea aglaura.

 

Iedereen bedankt voor de reactie en de favorieten/vind ik leuk!!!

 

Thanks everyone for the response and favorites/Likes!!!

 

© All pictures are copyrighted, do not publish without authorization.

 

One single shot.

Ever notice how if you have 36 exposures you never reach the end of the film, but if you have 24, you're at the end before you know it? Film extensions would solve this particular dilemma.

The great extent of this anvil required some creative methods to capture its structure. The light and shadow surrounding this massive storm cell were impressive.

 

Taken with Nikon P950.

Ting Kau Bridge is an extention bridge of the Tsing Ma Bridge linking the Tsing Yee Island and New Territories.

SN/NC: Echinacea Purpurea, Asteraceae Family

 

Echinacea purpurea, the eastern purple coneflower, purple coneflower, hedgehog coneflower, or echinacea, is a North American species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to parts of eastern North America and present to some extent in the wild in much of the eastern, southeastern and midwestern United States as well as in the Canadian Province of Ontario. It is most common in the Ozarks and in the Mississippi/Ohio Valley. Its habitats include dry open woods, prairies and barrens.

Echinacea is derived from Greek, meaning 'spiny one', in reference to the spiny sea urchins 'εχίνοι' which the ripe flower heads of species of this genus resemble. The epithet purpurea means 'reddish-purple'. Originally named Rudbeckia purpurea by Linnaeus in 1753 in Species plantarum 6, it was reclassified in 1794 by Conrad Moench, in a new genus named Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench. In 1818, Thomas Nuttall describes a new variety that he named Rudbeckia purpurea var. serotina. Just two decades later, De Candolle raised him to the rank of species of the other genus Echinacea serotina (Nutt.) DC. (1836). In 2002, Binns et al. discovered a misapplication of the name Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench for the taxon correctly named Echinacea serotina (Nutt.) DC. in 1836. The authors proposed to retain the names not to cause confusion among gardeners and herbalists. Other names include: Broad-leaved purple coneflower, Eastern Purple Coneflower, Hedgehog Coneflower, Echinacea.

 

A equinácea é uma planta medicinal, também conhecida como flor-de-cone, púrpura ou rudbéquia, rica em alcamidas, flavonóides e polissacarídeos, com propriedades anti-inflamatórias, antialérgicas e imunomoduladoras, sendo, por isso, muito utilizada como remédio caseiro no tratamento de gripes e resfriados, aliviando a coriza e a tosse.

Ela é uma espécie norte-americana de planta com flores na família Asteraceae, a mesma do girassol e das margaridas e dálias. É nativa do leste da América do Norte e presente em grande parte do leste, sudeste e centro-oeste dos Estados Unidos, bem como na província canadense de Ontário e British Columbia, para mencionar algumas. É mais comum nos Ozarks e no Vale dos Rios Mississippi e Ohio. Seus habitats incluem bosques abertos secos, pradarias e áridos. Echinacea é derivado do grego, que significa 'espinhoso', em referência aos ouriços-do-mar espinhosos 'εχίνοι', aos quais as cabeças de flores maduras de espécies deste gênero se assemelham. O epíteto purpurea significa 'roxo-avermelhado'. É uma linda flor.

 

L'Echinacea purpurea, l'echinacea viola orientale, l'echinacea viola, l'echinacea riccio o l'echinacea, è una specie di pianta da fiore nordamericana della famiglia delle Asteraceae. È originario di parti del Nord America orientale e in una certa misura è presente allo stato selvatico in gran parte degli Stati Uniti orientali, sudorientali e centro-occidentali, nonché nella provincia canadese dell'Ontario. È più comune negli Ozarks e nella valle del Mississippi/Ohio. I suoi habitat includono boschi aperti asciutti, praterie e aridi.

Echinacea deriva dal greco, che significa 'spinoso', in riferimento ai ricci di mare spinosi 'εχίνοι' a cui assomigliano i capolini maturi di specie di questo genere. L'epiteto purpurea significa 'porpora rossastro'

 

Echinacea purpurea, de oostelijke paarse zonnehoed, paarse zonnehoed, egel zonnehoed of echinacea, is een Noord-Amerikaanse soort bloeiende plant in de familie Asteraceae. Het is inheems in delen van Oost-Noord-Amerika en komt tot op zekere hoogte in het wild voor in een groot deel van het oosten, zuidoosten en middenwesten van de Verenigde Staten, evenals in de Canadese provincie Ontario. Het komt het meest voor in de Ozarks en in de Mississippi/Ohio-vallei. De habitats omvatten droge open bossen, weilanden en kale vlaktes.

Echinacea is afgeleid van het Grieks en betekent 'stekelige', verwijzend naar de stekelige zee-egels 'εχίνοι' waarop de rijpe bloemhoofdjes van soorten van dit geslacht lijken. Het epitheton purpurea betekent 'rood-paars'.

 

Echinacea purpurea , la equinácea púrpura oriental , la equinácea púrpura , la equinácea erizo o la equinácea , es una especie norteamericana de planta con flores de la familia Asteraceae . Es nativo de partes del este de América del Norte y está presente hasta cierto punto en la naturaleza en gran parte del este, sureste y medio oeste de los Estados Unidos, así como en la provincia canadiense de Ontario. Es más común en los Ozarks y en el valle de Mississippi/Ohio. Sus hábitats incluyen bosques abiertos secos, praderas y páramos.

Echinacea se deriva del griego, que significa 'espinoso', en referencia a los erizos de mar espinosos 'εχίνοι' a los que se asemejan las cabezas de flores maduras de las especies de este género. El epíteto purpurea significa 'púrpura rojizo'.

 

Echinacea purpurea, l'échinacée pourpre orientale, l'échinacée pourpre, l'échinacée hérisson ou l'échinacée, est une espèce nord-américaine de plante à fleurs de la famille des astéracées. Il est originaire de certaines parties de l'est de l'Amérique du Nord et est présent dans une certaine mesure à l'état sauvage dans une grande partie de l'est, du sud-est et du Midwest des États-Unis ainsi que dans la province canadienne de l'Ontario. Il est le plus courant dans les Ozarks et dans la vallée du Mississippi/Ohio. Ses habitats comprennent des bois ouverts secs, des prairies et des landes.

L'échinacée vient du grec et signifie « épineux », en référence aux oursins épineux « εχίνοι » auxquels ressemblent les inflorescences mûres des espèces de ce genre. L'épithète purpurea signifie « violet rougeâtre ».

 

Echinacea purpurea, der östliche Purpur-Sonnenhut, Purpur-Sonnenhut, Igel-Sonnenhut oder Echinacea, ist eine nordamerikanische Pflanzenart aus der Familie der Asteraceae. Sie ist in Teilen des östlichen Nordamerika beheimatet und bis zu einem gewissen Grad in freier Wildbahn in weiten Teilen des Ostens, Südostens und mittleren Westens der Vereinigten Staaten sowie in der kanadischen Provinz Ontario vorhanden. Es ist am häufigsten in den Ozarks und im Mississippi/Ohio Valley. Seine Lebensräume umfassen trockene offene Wälder, Prärien und Ödland.

Echinacea leitet sich aus dem Griechischen ab und bedeutet „stacheliger", in Anlehnung an die stacheligen Seeigel „εχίνοι", denen die reifen Blütenköpfe von Arten dieser Gattung ähneln. Der Beiname purpurea bedeutet „rötlich-lila".

 

إشنسا بوربوريا ، الصنوبريات الأرجوانية الشرقية ، الصنوبريات الأرجواني ، قنفذ القنفذ ، أو إشنسا ، هو نوع من النباتات المزهرة في أمريكا الشمالية في عائلة Asteraceae. هي موطنها الأصلي في أجزاء من شرق أمريكا الشمالية وتوجد إلى حد ما في البرية في الكثير من شرق وجنوب شرق وغرب الولايات المتحدة وكذلك في مقاطعة أونتاريو الكندية. هو الأكثر شيوعًا في أوزاركس وفي وادي المسيسيبي / أوهايو. تشمل موائلها الغابات المفتوحة الجافة والمروج والجبل.

إشنسا مشتق من اللغة اليونانية ، وتعني "الشوكة الواحدة" ، في إشارة إلى قنافذ البحر الشوكية "εχίνοι" التي تشبهها رؤوس الأزهار الناضجة لأنواع هذا الجنس. الصفة بوربوريا تعني "أرجواني محمر".

 

Echinacea purpurea、イースタン パープル コーンフラワー、パープル コーンフラワー、ハリネズミ コーンフラワー、またはエキナセアは、キク科の開花植物の北米種です。北米東部の一部に自生し、米国東部、南東部、中西部の多く、およびカナダのオンタリオ州にある程度野生で存在します。オザークとミシシッピ/オハイオ渓谷で最も一般的です.その生息地には、乾いた開けた森、大草原、不毛地帯が含まれます。

エキナセアは、この属の種の熟した花の頭が似ているとげのあるウニ「εχίνοι」に関連して、「とげのあるもの」を意味するギリシャ語に由来します。別名プルプレアは「赤紫色」を意味します。

Pisa is a city in Italy's Tuscany region best known for its iconic Leaning Tower. Already tilting when it was completed in 1372, the 56m white-marble cylinder is the bell tower of the Romanesque, striped-marble cathedral that rises next to it in the Piazza dei Miracoli.

"And then I looked into the void" - lyrical exaggeration is always allowed to a certain extent, right?

 

[Lichterfelde_20220605_1025_e-m10_06057363]

5Z32 Polmadie D.H.S. to Glasgow Central. Class 86 in Intercity Swallow livery crosses the Clyde on the approach to Glasgow Central with an ECS move during LSL's 'Ayr extention tour'

Deutschland - Baden-Württemberg - Kaiserstuhl

 

Schelinger Matten

 

The Kaiserstuhl (German: [ˈkaɪzɐʃtuːl], lit. "Emperor’s Chair") is a range of hills in the state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany with a maximum height of 556.6 metres (1,826 ft). It is of volcanic origin and located in the southwest of the state in the counties of Emmendingen and Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald. In terms of natural regions it is considered to be a part of the Upper Rhine Plain.

 

Name

 

The name "Kaiserstuhl" is believed to refer to King Otto III, who held court near Sasbach on 22 December 994. From then on, the whole hill range was called the Königsstuhl – the King’s Chair. In May 996, Otto III was crowned Emperor and the King’s Chair eventually became the Emperor’s Chair – "Kaiserstuhl". Reliable sources mention the name Kaiserstuhl only as early as 1304 and historians thus suppose that the term Kaiserstuhl was not coined until the 13th century.

 

Geography

 

Location

 

The Kaiserstuhl is situated in South Baden, mainly in Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald county or district. However, the smaller northern part belongs to Emmendingen. Within the Upper Rhine Plain it is situated about 16 km northwest of the city of Freiburg, right next to the eastern bank of the Rhine and a short distance west of the Dreisam. It reaches up to 377 metres above the level of the Rhine downstream (179.5 m a.s.l.) from the weir close to Burkheim.

 

At its greatest extent, from the Michaelsberg near Riegel in the northeast, to the Fohrenberg, by Ihringen in the southwest, the Kaiserstuhl is about 15 km long. Its maximum width is about 12.5 km.

 

Hills

 

The hills of the Kaiserstuhl include the following (sorted by height in metres above sea level):

 

Totenkopf (556.6 m), 1.9 km east of Bickensohl; with the Vogtsburg 1 telecommunication tower and Neunlinden observation tower

Eichelspitze (521.3 m), 2.8 km northwest of Bötzingen

Katharinenberg (492.4 m), 1.3 km southeast of Amoltern

Bisamberg (469.0 m), 1.2 km south of Amoltern

Staffelberg (446.0 m), 1.5 km northwest of Schelingen

Badberg (432.7 m) (protected area), 1.5 km east of Oberbergen

Holzeck (431.9 m), 1.7 km northeast of Ihringen; with tower

Hochbuck (374.8 m), 900 m south of Achkarren

Schlossberg (352.1 m), 500 m northwest of Achkarren; with Höhingen Castle ruins

Böselsberg (340.1 m), 500 m northwest of Wasenweiler

Büchsenberg (283.7 m), 1.3 km west of Achkarren

 

Geology

 

The formation of the Kaiserstuhl volcano during the Tertiary was the climax and at the same time the end of volcanic activity in the Upper Rhine Valley Rift. Volcanism started as early as the Cretaceous Period. Volcanic landforms include heavily eroded volcanic vents. The Kaiserstuhl is the only larger volcano from this period in the rift valley. Geologically the Kaiserstuhl can be divided into two parts: the sedimentary and volcanic part. Due to these peculiarities the Kaiserstuhl has been labeled one of the most important national geotopes.

 

Sedimentary base

 

The horizontal sedimentary layers forming the eastern third of the Kaiserstuhl date back to the Jurassic and the Tertiary long before the volcanic activity. Important stratigraphic outcrops include the Hauptrogenstein (local oolite) which is found mainly near the village of Riegel and the Pechelbronner Schichten (local Tertiary layers in the South German Scarplands) near Bötzingen. During the formation of the Upper Rhine Plain this part of the Kaiserstuhl sloped less in respect to its surrounding area – and thus appears as a so-called horst. In terms of its geological structure and the sequence of its escarpments, the Kaiserstuhl is comparable to the nearby Tuniberg, Nimberg and also to the Schönberg, which is situated south of the city of Freiburg.

 

Volcanic activity

 

Petrologically the volcanic Kaiserstuhl is an alkali-carbonate rock formation. The volcanic rocks making up a large part of the central and western Kaiserstuhl were the result of numerous volcanic eruptions during the Miocene, about 19 to 16 million years ago. They cover parts of the sedimentary base of the eastern Kaiserstuhl, which is why in some places changes in the base’s mineralogical composition occurred. The driving force behind this process of contact metamorphism was an increase in temperature. Due to the alternate eruption of tephra and lava flows from several vents a complex stratovolcano came into existence. Some of the rising magma solidified as volcanic intrusions below the surface – and today forms the central part of the Kaiserstuhl. Laterally rising phonolite magma also intruded into the sedimentary base of the Eastern Kaiserstuhl. Several hundred metres of the original volcano have been eroded.

Volcanic rocks

 

The entire volcanic Kaiserstuhl consists of rock types that contain feldspathoid minerals and olivine and are undersaturated with SiO2. Most igneous rocks at the surface are leucite-tephrites, with subordinate phonolites, limburgites, and olivine-nephelinites (at the Limberg Mountain near Sasbach), the last of which is rich in xenoliths from the Earth’s mantle. Carbonatite ignimbrite and lapilli are local peculiarities; they can be found in places in the western part of the Kaiserstuhl (Henkenberg near Burkheim, Kirchberg near Oberrotweil).

 

The subvolcanic and intrusive rocks of the central Kaiserstuhl are plutonic equivalents of the erupted material (essexite, carbonatite and coarse-granular phonolite). Several local terms which do not carry official status with the International Union of Geological Sciences have been used for different varieties of the intrusive rocks. Of major scientific interest is the consolidated carbonatite near Altvogtsburg und Schelingen. It is a quite rare volcanic rock, which crystallized from a carbonate magmatic melt rather than a silicate one. Given its unusual composition for an igneous rock, the magmatic nature of the carbonatite was not proposed for a long time and remained doubtful subsequently. An alternative interpretation was that it was a metamorphically altered sedimentary rock, examples of which can be found nearby. Only in the 1950s and 1960s did research prove that it was a carbonatite; one of the clues was identification of the eruptive carbonatites found in the western part of the Kaiserstuhl. The carbonatite contains the niobium rich pyrochlore; attempts to mine the carbonatite rock for niobium were carried out in the middle of the 20th century, but the amount turned out to be too small to be economical.

 

Minerals

 

For a long time the Kaiserstuhl has been known for rare minerals. Examples include the quarries at the Limberg (zeolites), Badberg (carbonatites), Orberg and Fohberg. Well-crystallized minerals can be found predominantly in clefts or cavities in the volcanic rock.

 

Loess

 

The Kaiserstuhl is today largely covered by a Quaternary loess layer, a loosely cemented sediment. It is derived from other rocks through erosion and is then transported by the wind. The loess at the Kaiserstuhl – as in all the peripheral areas of the Upper Rhine Valley – was formed during the last Ice Age. Large parts were bare of vegetation and so loess was winnowed out from the Rhine sediments. It was then deposited in the periglacial area (i.e. ice-free, but surrounded by glaciers) at the Kaiserstuhl. The major process active here was frost weathering resulting in crushed rocks. The wind blew strongly, as there was no vegetation that could have moderated it – entraining the lightest material and depositing it at obstacles like the Kaiserstuhl. Deposition took place northeast of the Kaiserstuhl, as the winds blew from the southwest.

 

The higher the place of sedimentation, the thinner the layer of the sedimented material is. At the Kaiserstuhl the thickness of the loess layer varies between 10 and 40 metres. There are, however, also areas in the southwest where no loess has been deposited. The Northern Limestone Alps are considered the main source of the Kaiserstuhl loess. A rust-coloured band occurs at irregular intervals. It developed as a new material and did not arrive regularly but in phases of different intensities. In a phase of weak sedimentation the material on top weathered – and the calcium carbonate was washed out. It then precipitated further down and formed a particular type of soil horizon, which contains concretions of calcium carbonate.

 

The Kaiserstuhl loess soils are used for intensive farming, as they offer good aeration, high water storage capacities and good mechanical qualities. Besides, as a result of farming deep narrow ravine-like paths developed.

 

As the loess developed over time it is, furthermore, significant for flood control. Sponge-like, it absorbs and then gently releases rainfall. This quality is however lost when bulldozers, employed to construct large terraces for viticulture, compress the loess.

 

Climate

 

General

 

The Kaiserstuhl is one of the warmest regions in Germany. The winters are relatively mild for the area, and the summers are warm or even hot, with possible average temperatures of over 20 °C (68 °F) in July and August. Because of its loess covered volcanic soils it is a very good wine-producing region. The climatic situation of the Kaiserstuhl is outstanding in the area. It is rain-shadowed by the Vosges Mountains, under the climatic influence of the Belfort Gap and is characterized by a drier and hotter climate, which one would rather expect not to be typical of the area. Despite this, winters remain cold and dry, and summers wet, in comparison with Mediterranean climate (which instead has a rainfall peak during winter, which can see few frost days, and a dry season in summer).

 

Meteorological data

 

The average annual temperature is 9.9 °C (49.8 °F), with 50–60 days with a maximum temperature above 25 °C (77 °F) as well as 60–70 days with a minimum temperature below 0 °C (32 °F). This illustrates a special feature of the Kaiserstuhl: it is characterized by its relatively extreme climate. The average difference between the lowest and the highest average temperatures within one year is 18.5 °C (65.3 °F). The mean precipitation at the Kaiserstuhl is approximately 600–700 millimetres (24–28 in), with about 1,720 hours of sunshine per year.

 

Flora and fauna

 

The climate of the Kaiserstuhl also explains the vast richness of thermophile flora and fauna. The Kaiserstuhl is for example one of the places with the largest variety of orchids in Europe – more than 30 species have been recorded. Among the vines wild grape hyacinths sprawl and along acclivities iris plants blossom. Furthermore, sand lizards (lacerta bilineata) and praying mantis (Mantis religiosa) live here – species which mainly occur in the Mediterranean area. (However, according to the latest research results the sand lizard presumably belongs to the allochthonous species of the European green lizard (Lacerta viridis)). The pubescent oak (Quercus pubescens) is a Xerophyte and normally only occurs in Southern Europe, but is also able to survive at the Kaiserstuhl. This species has a disjunct distribution, which means away from its normal habitat. It is a relict of a postglacial warm period where there had been a much warmer climate around the Kaiserstuhl. After the end of the warm period only the named species were able to survive. Besides there is a larger population of the May beetle (Melolontha melolontha). In spite of protests from conservationists the May Beetle is controlled by the use of insecticides.

 

Changes in landscape

 

The terrain of the Kaiserstuhl has been altered by the people living there since it was settled. The loam there is strongly susceptible to erosion as a result of soil cultivation, thus terraces had to be added, which were then mostly used as vineyards, as well as fruit growing or for other agricultural uses. As a result, the typical small "patio" hillsides and the streaked loess sunken roads typical of the region came into being.

 

To start with, it was for this reason that smaller terraces were merged in around 1950, this resulted in large scale reallocation, which turned parts of the original landscape completely upside down.

 

The phases of this reallocation were:-

 

Small-scale realignment between 1950 and 1960. At the same time the terrain was generally modified by manual labour with the help of in-house machines. During this time approximately 950 hectares were enclosed by the farmland consolidation authority.

Between 1960 and 1970 the loess slopes were more comprehensively modified, whereby large rectangular terraced areas with corresponding high embankments were made. The terraces were arranged with mountain like slopes so that now only the multiple slope edges are visible from the valley. About 650 hectares of the surface were styled in this way.

The plans to create large-scale terraces made between 1970 and 1976 were executed with the help of heavy machinery, changing the landscape radically. Before the original, naturally formed, depressions had still been visible in the gentle hillsides with only small terraces. Natural and man-made structures existed side by side. However, these small-scale structures were then obliterated completely. Monstrous areas resembling fortresses and entirely incongruous to the region were created. The total wine-growing area of the terraces was 630 ha. As the embankments and other areas exceeded the size of the wine-growing areas, the changes affected more than twice the newly created arable area. The land reforms of Oberrotweil-Oberberg, Ihringen-Abtsweingarten, Eichstetten-Hättlinsberg and Endingen am Kaiserstuhl-Schambach are examples of this phase.

The last phase of wine-growing land reforms was realized between 1976 and 1982. Due, in part, to protests against plans for further large scale terraces the changes were not as radical as the previous phase: the maximum height for embankments was "limited" to 10 m and their shapes were "made smooth and adjusted to the landscape" (Mayer 1986, citation translated). This procedure was, for example, applied to about 330 ha of wine-growing area in Oberbergen-Baßgeige or in Bickensohl-Herrenstück.

 

From 1977 on, several longer periods of enhanced precipitation caused damage to the embankments. During one week in May 1983 for example, the amount of precipitation was so large that in some areas it was equivalent to one third of the annual average, causing great damage in the modified areas.

 

The surfaces of the acclivities often slid off together with the vegetation. Former valleys, which had been blocked due to re-allocation, were flushed out. In some terraces dramatic shear failures developed. In addition extensive, devastating frost damage occurred; due to the incline of the mountainside at the surfaces of the acclivities, cold air pockets were formed in which the vines in bloom were frostbitten. Additionally substantial frost damage occurred in the woody part of the vines, especially in the vineyards which were situated in lower regions. In earlier times fruit had mostly been grown here but later this was changed to vineyards.

 

The activity of the farmland consolidation authority was narrowed to repairing and partly to rescheduling which at least was meant to correct the most severe consequences of the transformations from 1982 on.

 

Hiking

 

There are many opportunities for hiking in the Kaiserstuhl. The best known trail is the North-South Trail (check mark: blue rhomb on yellow background) from Endingen across the Katharinenberg and the Totenkopf and the Neunlinden viewing point to Ihringen. From the trail there are panoramic views over the Black Forest, the Upper Rhine Valley and the Vosges.

 

(Wikipedia)

 

Der Kaiserstuhl ist ein bis 556,8 m ü. NHN hohes, kleines Mittelgebirge vulkanischen Ursprungs in der Oberrheinischen Tiefebene. Es erhebt sich im Südwesten von Baden-Württemberg (Deutschland), in den Landkreisen Emmendingen und Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald.

 

Namensdeutung

 

Seinen Namen hat der Kaiserstuhl vermutlich von König Otto III., der bei Sasbach am 22. Dezember 994 einen Gerichtstag abhielt. Nach diesem Gerichtstag wurde das ganze Gebirge als „Königsstuhl“ bezeichnet. Nachdem Otto III. im Mai 996 zum Kaiser gekrönt worden war, wurde aus dem „Königsstuhl“ der „Kaiserstuhl“. Nachweislich belegt ist die Bezeichnung „Kaiserstuhl“ erst seit 1304. Historiker vermuten, dass der Begriff „Kaiserstuhl“ nicht vor dem 13. Jahrhundert entstand.

 

Geographie

 

Lage

 

Naturräumlich wird der Kaiserstuhl zum Oberrheinischen Tiefland gezählt und stellt dort die Haupteinheit 203 dar. Er befindet sich in Südbaden zum Großteil im Landkreis Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald, der kleine Nordteil gehört zum Landkreis Emmendingen. Innerhalb der Oberrheinischen Tiefebene liegt er etwa 16 km nordwestlich der Großstadt Freiburg, direkt östlich des Rheins und etwas westlich der Dreisam. Er erhebt sich maximal 377,1 m über den Rhein unterhalb (179,5 m) des Stauwehrs bei Burkheim.

 

In seiner weitesten Ausdehnung vom Michaelsberg bei Riegel im Nordosten bis zum Fohrenberg bei Ihringen im Südwesten ist der Kaiserstuhl rund 15 km lang, seine größte Breite beträgt etwa 12,5 km.

 

Berge

 

Zu den Bergen, Erhebungen und deren Ausläufern des Kaiserstuhls gehören – sortiert nach Höhe in Meter (m) über Normalhöhennull[1]:

 

Totenkopf (556,8 m), 1,9 km östlich von Bickensohl; mit Fernmeldeturm Vogtsburg-Totenkopf und Aussichtsturm Neunlinden

Eichelspitze (521,3 m), 2,8 km nordwestlich von Bötzingen mit dem Eichelspitzturm

Katharinenberg (491,9 m), 1,3 km südsüdöstlich von Amoltern

Bisamberg (469,6 m), 1,2 km südlich von Amoltern

Staffelberg (447,6 m), 1,5 km nordnordwestlich von Schelingen

Badberg (432,7 m) (Naturschutzgebiet), 1,5 km östlich von Oberbergen

Holzeck (431,9 m), 1,7 km nordnordöstlich von Ihringen; mit Sendeturm

Hochbuck (375,2 m), 900 m südlich von Achkarren

Schlossberg (351,9 m), 500 m nordwestlich von Achkarren; mit Burgruine Höhingen

Böselsberg (340,1 m), 500 m nordwestlich von Wasenweiler

Hochberg, (288,7 m), 900 m nordöstlich von Jechtingen

Büchsenberg (283,7 m), 1,3 km westlich von Achkarren

 

Geologie

 

Die Entstehung des Kaiserstuhlvulkans im Tertiär stellt sowohl den Höhepunkt als auch den Schlusspunkt der vulkanischen Aktivität im Oberrheingraben dar. Diese begann schon in der Kreidezeit und zeigt sich in zahlreichen, heute tief erodierten Vulkanschloten. Der Kaiserstuhl ist der einzige größere Vulkan aus dieser Zeit im Bereich des Oberrheingrabens. Dieser trifft hier auf den Bonndorfer Graben, der über den Hegau zum Bodensee führt. Gegen Ende des Oligozäns drang Magma empor, erstarrte jedoch noch unter der Erdoberfläche. Erst im Miozän kam es zu einem Durchbruch und zu großflächigen Lavaströmen. Geologisch gesehen lässt sich der Kaiserstuhl in einen sedimentären und einen vulkanischen Teil gliedern. Aufgrund dieser Besonderheiten wurde der Kaiserstuhl als eines der bedeutendsten nationalen Geotope Deutschlands ausgezeichnet.

 

Sedimentärer Sockel

 

Die das östliche Drittel bildenden, nahezu horizontal lagernden Sedimentgesteine wurden lange vor der vulkanischen Aktivität zu Zeiten des Juras und Tertiärs gebildet. Wichtige aufgeschlossene stratigraphische Einheiten sind der Hauptrogenstein (hauptsächlich in Riegel) und die Pechelbronner Schichten (in der Gegend von Bötzingen). Dieser Teil des Kaiserstuhls wurde während der Entstehung des Oberrheingrabens weniger stark als seine Umgebung abgesenkt und stellt einen sogenannten Horst dar. Er entspricht im Aufbau und der Schichtenfolge äquivalenten Strukturen im näheren Umkreis, wie dem Tuniberg und Nimberg westlich sowie dem Schönberg südlich von Freiburg im Breisgau.

 

Vulkanismus

 

Petrologisch handelt es sich beim vulkanischen Kaiserstuhl um einen Alkaligesteins-Karbonatit-Komplex. Die den Großteil des zentralen und westlichen Kaiserstuhls aufbauenden vulkanischen Gesteine wurden vor rund 19 bis 16 Millionen Jahren im Miozän durch zahlreiche Vulkanausbrüche gebildet. Sie überlagern teilweise den sedimentären Sockel des östlichen Kaiserstuhls, wodurch dieser stellenweise kontaktmetamorph, das heißt durch Einwirkung hoher Temperatur, verändert wurde. Durch abwechselnde Eruption von Tephra und Lavaströmen aus mehreren Schloten bildete sich ein komplexer Schicht- oder Stratovulkan. Emporquellendes Magma erstarrte teilweise als subvulkanische Intrusion im Vulkangebäude und baut heute den Zentralkaiserstuhl auf. Lateral aufsteigende phonolithische Schmelzen drangen auch in den sedimentären Sockel des östlichen Kaiserstuhls. Bis heute wurden durch Erosion mehrere 100 m des ursprünglichen Vulkans abgetragen.

 

Vulkanische Gesteine

 

Der gesamte vulkanische Kaiserstuhl besteht aus Foid- und/oder Olivin-führenden, SiO2-untersättigten Gesteinen. Bei den Eruptivgesteinen handelt es sich zum größten Teil um Leucit-Tephrit, untergeordnet auch Phonolith, Limburgit und Olivin-Nephelinit (am Limberg bei Sasbach). Letzterer ist sehr reich an Xenolithen aus dem Erdmantel. Als Besonderheit bei den Eruptivgesteinen sind karbonatitische Ignimbrite und Lapilli zu nennen, die im Westkaiserstuhl an einigen Stellen (Henkenberg bei Burkheim, Kirchberg bei Oberrotweil) aufgeschlossen sind.

 

Bei den subvulkanischen Intrusionen und Ganggesteinen des zentralen Kaiserstuhls handelt es sich um die Tiefengesteinsäquivalente der Ausbruchsprodukte (Essexit, Karbonatit und grobkörnigerer Phonolith). Für verschiedene Varietäten der Ganggesteine existieren in der Literatur eine Fülle weiterer Bezeichnungen (Alvikit, Hauynophyr, Mondhaldeit, Tinguait, Monchiquit und viele andere), die aber teilweise keine allgemein anerkannten Gesteinsnamen sind. Von großem wissenschaftlichen Interesse ist der bei Altvogtsburg und Schelingen anstehende Karbonatit. Dabei handelt es sich um ein recht seltenes vulkanisches Gestein, das nicht aus einer silikatischen, sondern aus einer karbonatischen Schmelze auskristallisierte. Aufgrund dieses ungewöhnlichen Umstandes wurde die magmatische Natur des Karbonatits lange Zeit nicht erkannt oder in Zweifel gezogen. Alternative Interpretationen gingen von kontaktmetamorph veränderten Sedimentgesteinen aus, die bekanntermaßen in unmittelbarer Nähe zu finden sind. Erst in den 1950er- und 1960er-Jahren gelang es, das Gestein gesichert als Karbonatit zu identifizieren, unter anderem durch das Auffinden der eruptiven Karbonatite im westlichen Kaiserstuhl. Wegen des in ihm auftretenden Niob-Minerals Koppit wurde der Karbonatit in der Mitte des 20. Jahrhunderts versuchsweise bergmännisch abgebaut. Allerdings erwiesen sich die Gehalte als zu gering für eine Nutzung in größerem Umfang.

 

Minerale

 

Seit langer Zeit ist der Kaiserstuhl als Fundstelle für zum Teil seltene Minerale bekannt. Besondere Fundstellen sind die Steinbrüche im Limburgit des Limbergs (verschiedene Zeolithe), im Karbonatit am Badberg und Orberg (Koppit) und im Phonolith des Fohbergs und des Kirchbergs (Zeolithe, Wollastonit, Melanit). Überwiegend treten diese als Kluftminerale oder Blasenfüllungen (Mandelstein) auf.

 

Lössbedeckung

 

Der Kaiserstuhl ist heute weitgehend von einer quartären Lössschicht bedeckt. Löss ist ein Lockersediment, welches durch Erosion anderer Gesteine entsteht und durch äolischen Transport an seinen Ablagerungsort befördert wird. Der Löss entstand – wie im gesamten Randbereich der Oberrheinebene – während der letzten weitgehend vegetationsfreien Eiszeit durch Auswehung aus dem Rheinschlamm. Die Ablagerung fand im periglazialen (eisfreien, jedoch von Gletschereis umgebenen) Gebiet um den Kaiserstuhl statt. Der Hauptprozess, der in dieser Region stattfindet, ist Frostsprengung von Gestein. Da keine Vegetation vorhanden ist, die den Wind bremsen könnte, weht dieser beständig stark. Er nimmt das leichteste Material mit und lagert es an Hindernissen, beispielsweise dem Kaiserstuhl, wieder ab. Hierbei ist zu beachten, dass die Ablagerung im Lee stattfindet, im Falle des Kaiserstuhls – wo der Wind aus Südwesten wehte – also im Nordosten. Je höher der Sedimentationsort liegt, desto dünner ist die Schicht tatsächlich abgelagerten Materials. Am Kaiserstuhl liegt die Mächtigkeit der Lössschicht zwischen 10 und 40 Metern, es gibt jedoch auch Orte im Südwesten, an denen kein Löss sedimentiert wurde. Der Herkunftsort des Lösses am Kaiserstuhl lag hauptsächlich in den nördlichen Kalkalpen. Auffällig im anstehenden Löss ist ein sich in unregelmäßigen Abständen wiederholender, rostfarbener Streifen. Dieser entsteht durch die phasenweise Anlieferung neuen Materials. Während einer schwachen Sedimentationsphase verwittert das obenauf liegende Material, wobei der Kalk ausgewaschen wird. Hierbei bildet sich Lösslehm. Der ausgewaschene Kalkanteil fällt weiter unten im Bodenprofil wieder aus und bildet den sogenannten Lösskindelhorizont. Zu jedem Ausfällungshorizont gehört deshalb ein Anreicherungshorizont.

 

Die Lössböden des Kaiserstuhls werden agrarisch intensiv genutzt, da sie eine gute Belüftung bieten und eine hohe Wasserspeicherfähigkeit sowie mechanisch gute Eigenschaften besitzen. Außerdem sind im Zuge der landwirtschaftlichen Nutzung die sogenannten Lösshohlwege entstanden.

 

Der gewachsene Löss ist zudem für den Hochwasserschutz von Bedeutung, da er starke Niederschläge wie ein Schwamm aufnimmt und dann gleichmäßig wieder abgibt. Durch die Anlage von Großterrassen für den Weinbau am Kaiserstuhl wird der Löss jedoch mit Planierraupen verdichtet und verliert diese Eigenschaft.

 

Klima

 

Allgemeines

 

Klimatisch zählt der Kaiserstuhl zur temperaten (gemäßigten) Klimazone. Durch die in der Oberrheinebene vorherrschende Wärmebegünstigung gehört er jedoch zu den wärmsten Orten Deutschlands mit für Mitteleuropa vergleichsweise milden Wintern und warmen Sommern, die teilweise sogar Durchschnittstemperaturen von über 20 Grad in den Monaten Juli und August aufweisen können. Durch seine mit Löss bedeckten vulkanischen Böden ist er ein sehr gutes Weinanbaugebiet. Die klimatischen Voraussetzungen des Kaiserstuhls heben sich von seiner Umgebung deutlich ab. Er liegt im Regenschatten der Vogesen, im Einfluss der Burgundischen Pforte, und hat somit ein eher trockenes Klima.

 

Meteorologische Daten

 

Die Jahresmitteltemperatur beträgt 9,9 °C, wobei sowohl 50 bis 60 Sommertage als auch 60 bis 70 Frosttage zu verzeichnen sind. Dies spiegelt schon ein besonderes Merkmal des Kaiserstuhls wider, denn er zeichnet sich durch recht extreme Klimaverhältnisse aus, was sich besonders in der durchschnittlichen jährlichen Temperaturschwankung von 18,5 °C ausdrückt. Der mittlere Niederschlag auf dem Kaiserstuhl beträgt etwa 600 bis 700 mm, bei jährlich rund 1.720 Stunden Sonnenschein.

 

Flora und Fauna

 

Das Klima des Kaiserstuhls erklärt auch die große Fülle an wärmeliebender Flora und Fauna. Beispielsweise ist der Kaiserstuhl einer der Orte mit der größten Orchideenvielfalt in Europa – mehr als 30 Arten wurden registriert. Zwischen den Rebstöcken wuchern wilde Traubenhyazinthen, und an Böschungen blühen Schwertlilien. Außerdem leben hier Bienenfresser, Smaragdeidechsen und Gottesanbeterinnen (Mantis religiosa) – Arten, die ihren Verbreitungsschwerpunkt im mediterranen Bereich haben (nach neuen genetischen Studien handelt es sich bei der Smaragdeidechse allerdings um eine wahrscheinlich allochthone Population der Östlichen Smaragdeidechse). Die Flaumeiche ist ein Xerophyt und kommt sonst vor allem in Südeuropa vor, am Kaiserstuhl kann sie sich jedoch vor allem im Flaumeichenwald am Büchsenberg als Niederwald halten. Diese Arten leben in einem disjunkten Areal, also von ihrem normalen Verbreitungsgebiet abgetrennt. Dies ist ein Relikt einer postglazialen Warmzeit, zu der auch im Gebiet um den Kaiserstuhl ein deutlich wärmeres Klima herrschte. Nach Ende der Warmzeit konnten die genannten Arten nur noch am Kaiserstuhl überleben. Außerdem gibt es am Kaiserstuhl größere Populationen des Maikäfers. Die Art wurde in der Vergangenheit trotz Kritik von Umweltschützern mit Insektiziden bekämpft, so etwa im Jahr 2009. Die Aktion wurde damit begründet, dass der Maikäfer ansonsten existenzbedrohende Schäden in der umliegenden Landwirtschaft auslösen könnte.

 

Landschaftsveränderung

 

Die Oberfläche des Kaiserstuhls wurde vom wirtschaftenden Menschen seit dessen Besiedlung verändert. Da Löss infolge der Bodenbearbeitung stark erosionsanfällig ist, mussten Terrassen geschaffen werden, die meist als Rebflächen, teilweise auch für Obst- oder zum Ackerbau genutzt wurden. Dadurch entstanden schon früh die typischen kleinterrassierten Hänge, die zudem von den ebenfalls durch die „Nutzung“ entstandenen Lösshohlwegen durchzogen wurden.

 

Im Sinne der Flurbereinigung wurde um 1950 damit begonnen, zunächst kleinere Terrassen zusammenzulegen; dies endete in Großumlegungen, welche die ursprüngliche Landschaft in Teilbereichen völlig umgestalteten. Diese Umgestaltung begann zwischen 1950 und 1960 mit kleinräumigen Neuordnungen. Dabei wurde das Gelände meist in Handarbeit bzw. mit Hilfe betriebseigener Maschinen umgestaltet. In dieser Zeit wurden rund 950 ha von den Flurbereinigungsbehörden flurbereinigt.

 

Zwischen 1960 und 1970 wurden die Lösshänge umfassender umgestaltet, wobei große, tiefe und möglichst rechteckige Terrassenflächen mit entsprechend hohen Böschungen entstanden. Die Terrassen wurden mit bergseitiger Neigung angelegt, so dass jetzt vom Tal aus vielfach nur noch die Kanten sichtbar sind. Auf diese Art entstanden rund 650 ha Rebfläche.

 

Mit umfassendem Maschineneinsatz wurden die Großterrassenplanungen der Jahre 1970 bis 1976 umgesetzt, die das Landschaftsbild deutlich veränderten. Vor diesen Maßnahmen zeichneten sich in den sanften Hängen, deren Oberflächen von den kleinen Terrassen überprägt waren, noch die ursprünglich natürlich entstandenen Senken ab. Statt diesem Nebeneinander von natürlichen und vom Menschen geschaffenen Strukturen nehmen die Kritiker nun festungsartige und landschaftsfremde Oberflächen wahr, die eine Gesamtgröße von ca. 630 ha Rebfläche bieten. Da die Böschungen und sonstigen Flächen größer waren als die Rebflächen, erstreckte sich die Landschaftsveränderung jeweils auf mehr als das Doppelte der neu geschaffenen nutzbaren Fläche. Beispiele für diese Phase sind die Flurbereinigungen Oberrotweil-Oberberg, Ihringen-Abtsweingarten, Eichstetten-Hättlinsberg und Endingen am Kaiserstuhl-Schambach. Inzwischen war der Großteil der Lösshohlwege durch die Flurbereinigung verschwunden, die zuvor ökologische Nischen speziell für Wildbienen und Vögel gewesen waren.

 

Die letzte Phase der Rebflurbereinigung erstreckte sich auf die Zeit zwischen 1976 und 1982, in der unter anderem wegen der Proteste gegen die Großterrassenplanungen gemäßigt vorgegangen wurde: Die Böschungshöhen wurden auf maximal 10 m „beschränkt“, der Böschungsverlauf wurde „geschwungen angelegt und der Landschaft angepasst“. Mit diesen Verfahren wurden zum Beispiel in Oberbergen-Baßgeige oder in Bickensohl-Herrenstück rund 330 ha Rebfläche bearbeitet.

 

Nachdem ab 1977 durch länger anhaltende niederschlagsreiche Perioden Böschungsschäden entstanden waren, fielen in der Pfingstwoche des Jahres 1983 Niederschlagsmengen, die teilweise ein Drittel des Jahresmittels ausmachten. Diese führten in den umgelegten Gebieten zu Schäden: Die Böschungsoberflächen rutschten vielfach mitsamt der Vegetation ab, ehemalige, durch die Umlegungen verschüttete Talzüge wurden ausgeschwemmt, in einzelnen Terrassen entstanden tiefgreifende Grundbrüche. Überdies kam es in den Folgejahren zu Frostschäden. Durch die bergseitige Neigung der Terrassenoberflächen konnten sich Kaltluftseen bilden, in denen die Reben vor allem in der Blüte erfroren.[6] Außerdem entstanden, vor allem in den niedriger gelegenen Rebflächen, in denen zuvor meist Obst angebaut worden war, erhebliche Frostschäden am Holz der Rebbestände.

 

Die Tätigkeit der Flurbereinigungsbehörden beschränkte sich in der Zeit nach 1982 auf Reparaturarbeiten und partielle Umplanungen, die zumindest die schwersten Folgen der Umgestaltungen korrigieren sollten. Inzwischen hatte man auch begonnen, die verbliebenen Lösshohlwege als Naturdenkmale auszuweisen und sie zu schützen.

 

Seit 2021 wird auf einer Fläche von etwa einem Hektar Echter Lavendel und Lavandin angebaut. Dank der Wärme und der kalkreichen Böden gedeiht er gut. Zwei der vier Felder liegen in Bischoffingen, wo es auch einen Hofladen gibt und je eines in Königschaffhausen und Burkheim. Auf letzterem wachsen neun verschiedene Sorten.

 

Wandern

 

Der bekannteste und „klassische“ Wanderweg ist der Neunlindenpfad (Nord-Süd-Weg); er ist einer von acht Themenpfaden und führt von Endingen über den Katharinenberg und den Totenkopf mit Aussichtsturm Neunlinden nach Ihringen. Von den Wegen bieten sich vielerorts Ausblicke auf den Schwarzwald, die Rheinebene und die Vogesen. Auch der Querweg Schwarzwald–Kaiserstuhl–Rhein führt über den Kaiserstuhl.

 

Als Wissenschaftlicher Lehrpfad wurde 1977 der Limberg-Weg angelegt. Er umfasst 90 Stationen zu den Themen Geologie und Mineralogie, Geschichte, Naturschutz und Landschaftspflege, Forstwirtschaft, Wein- und Obstbau, Rheinbau und Wasserwirtschaft, sowie Landeskunde.

 

Die acht Themenpfade wurden 2007 mit einer Gesamtlänge von 140 km eröffnet und in das bestehende Wanderwegenetz des Schwarzwaldvereins (Markierung: gelber Rhombus auf weißem Hintergrund) integriert. Dabei wurde das Wanderwegenetz mit 430 neuen Wegweisern ausgeschildert. Große Tafeln mit einer Übersichtskarte und mit Standortinformationen sind an zentralen Punkten wie zum Beispiel an Bahnhöfen in den von den Themenpfaden verbundenen oder durchlaufenden Ortschaften aufgestellt. Jeder Themenpfad ist durch eine eigene Farbe und ein dem Namen entsprechendes Symbol auf den Eingangsportalen und den Wegweisern optisch gekennzeichnet. Weitere 120 kleinere Thementafeln erläutern entlang der Wanderwege lokale Besonderheiten. Örtliche Pfade, wie zum Beispiel der Brunnenpfad (7 km) in Bötzingen, wurden in das neue Netz der Themenpfade integriert.

 

Die acht Themenpfade wurden 2010 durch den Kaiserstuhlpfad ergänzt, der als Prädikatswanderweg das Gütesiegel „Qualitätsweg Wanderbares Deutschland“ erhielt. Der 21,7 km lange Kaiserstuhlpfad orientiert sich mit einigen Erweiterungen am Neunlindenpfad (Nord-Süd-Weg) und führt von Endingen durch das Erletal hoch zur Katharinenkapelle, entlang der Naturschutzgebiete Badberg und Haselschacher Buck zum Eichelspitzturm, weiter über den Vogelsang-Pass zum Neunlindenturm, durch den Lößhohlweg Eichgasse nach Bickensohl und über den Kreuzenbuck durch die Lenzengasse nach Ihringen.

 

(Wikipedia)

This tree marks the northern extent of Mount Olympus in Salt Lake County, Utah. Lights from Salt Lake City and a slight reflection from The Great Salt Lake are visible in the distance. I've had occasion to snap a number of photos of this site in the past as my day of hiking near Neff's Canyon was coming to an end. Almost every time it has something different to show me.

American Avocet AMAV (Recurvirostra Americana)

female (by extent of curve)

 

dried out mudflats near

Pakowki Lake

Alberta

 

DSCN2570

Road Trip 2016(last year)

  

i was not aware how much toe webbing the AMAV can have.(Something which neither Sibley’s nor Stokes seem to indicate as far as i could see :)

 

Click on image to enlarge for more detailed view

This dam hasn't seen so much water since 2013.

The drought that we have experienced in South Africa seems to have been broken to some extent.

 

PSP**** Prise SurPrise!! Clouds

 

Lydenburg rural area

South Africa

For Macro Monday........The First Letter of My Name.......Lorna

 

This lace is a scrap from my daughter's wedding dress, a Chantilly style of netted lace. The couching apparently was hand sewn.

Wildlife photography is to a large extent about opportunities, those you seize, those you miss, those you don't even see.... Red-winged blackbirds for sure are offering plenty of opportunities on Vancouver Island for a large portion of the year. It is probably one of the first bird I photographed when I started wildlife photography a few years ago. It is ever since, probably the bird I photograph the most each year. Yet, I feel that there is always a better picture of a red-winged blackbird which needs to be taken. The temptation was great to present a "year-end exhibit" of all those red-winged blackbird pictures I have taken this year. You will be glad I refrained from it. Here are a few I like.

LFM Paris All-Night Shoot. Paris, France May 2009

The pure extent of the stars you can see in the dark sky zone on Exmore is absolutely amazing. Will always stay here for hours. #starsstars #astrophotographers #exmore #devon #sony #beauty

 

Shot in Sony a7 - Samyang 14mm

Auriga is busy; DeepSkyStacker registered 50k+ stars in this extent. DSOs include the Flaming Star Nebula (IC 405), the Tadpole Nebula (IC 410), the Spider (IC 417) and Fly (NGC 1931) Nebulae, the Pinwheel Cluster (M 36), the Starfish Cluster (M 38), dark nebulae MLB 35, B 222, and CB 27 (on the lower right), and Sharpless 232, 231, and 235 (emission nebulae on the upper left, flic.kr/p/Ru8EmT).

 

Fujifilm X-T10, Samyang 135mm f/2.0 ED UMC @ f2.0, ISO 1600, 50 x 60 sec, tracking with iOptron SkyTracker Pro, stacking with DeepSkyStacker, editing with Astro Pixel Processor and GIMP, taken on Nov. 21, 2019 under Bortle 3/4 skies.

Lighthouse at the westernmost extent of Europe.

To the extent the Japanese rainy season, this year doesn't see the kind in an ordinary year.

I was leaving by earliness which is so.

This mountain where I came by chance in summer of last year is deep.

That a valley stream rich in the rustic beauty will be rainfall, the quantity of water.

It's rich and vivid.

This valley stream by which such rainy season has ended, mostly, daily.

Be so, I keep taking a picture.

The forest and the rock are covered by green moss up and are wonderful.

In a clear flow of the water on which faint light shines, life is feeling.drags me by overwhelming charm.

The earth where I live in this fascinating view, oh.

I realized and it was enriched, this, wonderful.

Made important forever as my memory.

I'd like to go on !

 

This shows the extent of the lake flood by the Sicamous and tugs Naramata and Canadian National No. 6 in Penticton. The boardwalk past the flock of geese seen here, has been built so that emergency exit on the port side of the Sicamous can still be used.

 

Normally there is a path on the west side of the Sicamous out to the breakwater, and the Naramata is usually on dry land in a fenced-off enclosure. Not right now.

 

Explored Jun 14, 2017

 

See my 'Penticton Flood' set and slide show here

Bluebell's anniversary of the Extention to East Grinstead. Visiting engine GWR 5643 climbs Freshfield Bank, 22nd March 2014. More of the 56XX class at davebowles.smugmug.com/Railways/Great-Western-Region/56XX...

To some extent, photographers are graphic designer, aren't we? We are constantly looking for elements of design.

 

Happy Sunday!

 

Fuji X-T1

Fuji XF 50-140mm

Velvia Film Simulation

To some extent I happily don't know what I'm doing. I feel that it's an artist's responsibility to trust that.

-- David Byrne

The full extent of the job to replace the cladding on the Harvey Nicks apartment block. I have to say I've huge admiration for the folks who put up the scaffolding. This is an intricate job and I imagine one faulty connection could be a catastrophe

Chicago Botanic Garden, 'Butterflies and Blooms' tent, housing 2500 butterflies they claim.

 

Shot with Nikon D610, AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR and a 20mm automatic extention tube. 151mm, f7.1, 1/1000sec, ISO 800, AF-C focus mode. Ring light flash

 

PNT_9638