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South door.
. Unbuttressed, late w tower with pyramid roof. But the nave is Norman and has in its s doorway and chancel arch two of the very best and most characteristic pieces of the Herefordshire school of carvers. Both pieces are clearly the work of one man. His obsession was birds, especially cocks. Cocks are e.g. on the capitals of the one order of shafts of the S doorway. The abacus has intertwined trails. In the arch a thick roll moulding and a band of rosettes. But the tympanum is what really matters, a tympanum that helps much to reconstruct the all but lost one of Shobdon, of which Rowlstone is to all intents and purposes a copy. It represents Christ in Glory. The legs are placed in the typically Romanesque way, with knees wide apart and feet together. The folds have the tense, stringy parallel curves of the Herefordshire school. The figure is in a halo, not almond-shaped as usual, but with top and bottom rounded. Four angels hold the halo, and all four are represented flying head downwards. This allows the carver again to display his curved parallels. The composition is highly accomplished. What is against nature is in accordance with stylistic principles. In the capitals of the chancel arch there are again birds. The capitals it are of one piece with the outer adjoining panel of two small figures on each side. On the 1. (N) they are an angel and a bishop, on the r. it is not so easy to recognize them, as they stand upside down. That does not seem quite so accomplished, and the most baffling fact is that the whole stone was not rejected. Such indulgence is attractive; it is instructive too. Many birds once more in the abaci. In the doorway arch a thick roll and an outer band of saltire crosses. Norman windows in nave and chancel.
(Pevsner: The Buildings of England, Herefordshire)
Built 1891 at entrance gates to Pater Waite’s “Urrbrae House”. For many years the home of the head gardener, Frederick Charles Couzens, now private.
“Adelaide Hunt Club. Meet on Saturday on Fullarton-road, outside Urrbrae Lodge Gates, at 2.30 p m.” [Advertiser 8 Oct 1891 advert]
“Driving up the Fullarton-road, and passing the picturesquely-built Urrbrae Lodge.” [Evening Journal 11 Dec 1891]
“The Adelaide Hounds. . . Hunt Club. . . On Tuesday morning there will be a qualifying run at 8 o'clock, starting from the Urrbrae Lodge gates and finishing at Dulwich.” [Advertiser 6 Sep 1898]
“Gardener, Married, take charge Urrbrae Garden. Apply, letter only, enclosing references. Peter Waite, Currie street.” [Register 26 Feb 1902 advert]
“Adelaide Hunt Club. The Hounds will Meet on Saturday outside the Urrbrae Lodge Gates at 2.30 p.m., and run, via Mitcham Dairy, to Knoxville.” [Advertiser 26 Jun 1903 advert]
“Respectable Girl, assist housework, fond children. — Mrs. Couyan's [sic], care Mr. Peter Waite's Lodge, Urrbrae.” [Advertiser 2 Aug 1905 advert]
“A wedding was solemnised at the Urrbrae Lodge, Fullarton, the residence of the bride's parents, by the Rev. A. J. Finch, of Norwood, on May 17. The contracting parties were Athol Charles, youngest son of the late Mr. George and Mrs. Binney, of Kingswood, and Rita May, eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. F. Couzens, of Fullarton.” [The Mail 31 May 1924]
“Urrbrae homestead. . . The lodge is at the main entrance. The structures and the orchard and flower garden have been kept in order since the death of Mr. and Mrs. Waite. The custodians arc three long-service employes of the place, the caretaker (Mr. R. Halden) having worked there for about 21 years, the gardener (Mr. F. Couzens) for 20 years, and their assistant (Mr. J. Bradey) for 22 years. At present the estate is being utilized for grazing purposes.” [Register 24 Jun 1924]
“When Mr. Peter Waite bequeathed the Waite grounds to the University Council he desired a certain area to be preserved as a park, and it was planted as an arboretum. All except a few original trees have been planted within the past five or six years. . . the avenue from the Urrbrae lodge is bordered with great Sugar Gums, and along the boundary fences pines of three or four species have been planted.” [The Mail 4 Aug 1934]
“COUZENS.—On July 23 (suddenly), at her residence, corner of Cross and Fullarton roads, Fullarton, Martha Jane, the dearly beloved wife of Frederick Charles Couzens and loving mother of Fred, Rita, Urrbrae, Keith, George, Melba, Leonard and the late Jack. Aged 72 years. Sadly missed.” [Advertiser 24 Jul 1947]
“A walk through the arboretum with Mr. Couzens is a most interesting and instructive experience as he knows the name, the age, the natural habitat, and the history of every tree. They are planted in grassland which, except for a circle round the trees when they are young, has never been cultivated since the first plantings took place. The grass growth is controlled by sheep. . For the first four or five years the trees are watered in the summer.” [Chronicle 20 May 1948]
“COUZENS. — On February 4, suddenly, at the residence of his son (Mr. G. Couzens), Semaphore, Frederick Charles, the dearly beloved husband of the late Martha Jane Couzens, of Urrbrae Lodge, Glen Osmond, and loving father of Fred, Rita, Urrbrae, Keith, George, Melba, Leonard and the late Jack. Aged 75 years. Reunited.” [Advertiser 6 Feb 1950]
“the late Mr. Frederick Charles Couzens. . . his Funeral will leave his late residence, Urrbrae Lodge, Glen Osmond. . . for the Mitcham Cemetery.” [Advertiser 6 Feb 1950]
Il G.46 fu il primo nuovo progetto della Fiat dopo la fine della II Guerra Mondiale (1946). Il prototipo volò per la prima volta nel febbraio 1948, e già i primi collaudi misero in luce le eccellenti caratteristiche di volo (manovrabilità e affidabilità in acrobazia), dovute anche al fatto che il G.46 derivava dai monoplani Fiat costruiti nella seconda fase della guerra. Usato dalle scuole di volo per il 1° e 2° periodo di addestramento fu acquistato in oltre 140 esemplari dall'A.M.I., 70 dall'aeronautica argentina, dall'Austria e dalla Siria. I Fiat G.46 in Italia furono assegnati alla S.V. di Galatina (Lecce), ai vari C.A.V. , alla Scuola di Guerra aerea di Firenze-Peretola, alla A.A. di Nisida e ad altri Comandi in Sicilia e Sardegna. La produzione di quest'aereo terminò nel 1952 e nel 1958 l'A.M.I. iniziò la cessione di una cinquantina di esemplari ai vari aeroclub italiani. L'esemplare esposto al Parco Tematico dell'Aviazione è un G.46 3A con MM. 52805 appartenuto alla S.G. (Scuola di Guerra Aerea) di Firenze dal 1951 fino alla fine del 1959, dopodichè fu immatricolato civile con la sigla I-AEKE.
The G 46 was the first new project of FIAT manufacturer after the 2nd World War (1946). The first prototype flew in February 1948 and even from the first test-flights it proved its excellent performance ( manageability during the acrobatic shows) due at the development of the G 46 from the FIAT monoplane built at the end of 2nd World War. The G 46 was used as trainer airplane for the 1st and 2nd instructive period of the pilot cadets in several Italian Military Flying Schools. Around 140 of these planes were bought from Italian Military Air Force, 70 from Argentina Air Force and other were bought from Austria and Siria. In Italy, the Fiat G 46 was operative in the Flying School of Galatina (Lecce), in different Flying Trainer Centres (C.A.V.), in the Air-war School of Florence - Peretola, in the A.A. of Nisida and in other different bases in Sicily and Sardinia. The production of these planes ended in 1952 and in 1958, by the Italian air force, 50 of these aircraft were given to the Italian Aero - clubs. The model in exhibition, a G 46 - 3A single-seat, presents code numbers and emblems of the airport of Florence - Peretola, where was operative from 1951 to 1959 and then it had a civil registration with marking I-AEKE.
Without wisdom no strength helps. The Titans were struck by the lightning of Jupiter. Does our 20th century, with its living planet, argue for a loving and highly civilized humanity?
Chocolate Jacques instructive chromos, picture-album "Race to the Stars", 1960's
Credit: Adam Schultz / Clinton Global Initiative
The Courage to Create
Many of the world’s most effective technologies or social movements grew out of organized brainstorms and were launched through a combination of hard work, strong mentors, and the courage to create. These successful innovators—whether working in dorm rooms, labs, studios, or classrooms—were able to start out and scale up despite having limited resources and few precedents for their work. While their impact may be widely recognized today, the hurdles and lessons learned from their earliest stages of design and implementation are as instructive and valuable to others. This session will bring together creative, impactful voices from a wide range of sectors to discuss:
• What first inspired their confidence in the process of innovation and creativity, and what some of their earliest challenges were.
• How to incentivize the invention and innovation process among young people through expanded access to seed funding, mentorship, technical training, and lower-risk student loan repayment plans.
• How students, universities, NGOs, and businesses can support a broader culture of creativity and collaborative design as core components of 21st century citizenship.
Credit: Adam Schultz / Clinton Global Initiative
The Courage to Create
Many of the world’s most effective technologies or social movements grew out of organized brainstorms and were launched through a combination of hard work, strong mentors, and the courage to create. These successful innovators—whether working in dorm rooms, labs, studios, or classrooms—were able to start out and scale up despite having limited resources and few precedents for their work. While their impact may be widely recognized today, the hurdles and lessons learned from their earliest stages of design and implementation are as instructive and valuable to others. This session will bring together creative, impactful voices from a wide range of sectors to discuss:
• What first inspired their confidence in the process of innovation and creativity, and what some of their earliest challenges were.
• How to incentivize the invention and innovation process among young people through expanded access to seed funding, mentorship, technical training, and lower-risk student loan repayment plans.
• How students, universities, NGOs, and businesses can support a broader culture of creativity and collaborative design as core components of 21st century citizenship.
Credit: Adam Schultz / Clinton Global Initiative
The Courage to Create
Many of the world’s most effective technologies or social movements grew out of organized brainstorms and were launched through a combination of hard work, strong mentors, and the courage to create. These successful innovators—whether working in dorm rooms, labs, studios, or classrooms—were able to start out and scale up despite having limited resources and few precedents for their work. While their impact may be widely recognized today, the hurdles and lessons learned from their earliest stages of design and implementation are as instructive and valuable to others. This session will bring together creative, impactful voices from a wide range of sectors to discuss:
• What first inspired their confidence in the process of innovation and creativity, and what some of their earliest challenges were.
• How to incentivize the invention and innovation process among young people through expanded access to seed funding, mentorship, technical training, and lower-risk student loan repayment plans.
• How students, universities, NGOs, and businesses can support a broader culture of creativity and collaborative design as core components of 21st century citizenship.
Built 1891 at entrance gates to Pater Waite’s “Urrbrae House”. For many years the home of the head gardener, Frederick Charles Couzens, now private.
“Adelaide Hunt Club. Meet on Saturday on Fullarton-road, outside Urrbrae Lodge Gates, at 2.30 p m.” [Advertiser 8 Oct 1891 advert]
“Driving up the Fullarton-road, and passing the picturesquely-built Urrbrae Lodge.” [Evening Journal 11 Dec 1891]
“The Adelaide Hounds. . . Hunt Club. . . On Tuesday morning there will be a qualifying run at 8 o'clock, starting from the Urrbrae Lodge gates and finishing at Dulwich.” [Advertiser 6 Sep 1898]
“Gardener, Married, take charge Urrbrae Garden. Apply, letter only, enclosing references. Peter Waite, Currie street.” [Register 26 Feb 1902 advert]
“Adelaide Hunt Club. The Hounds will Meet on Saturday outside the Urrbrae Lodge Gates at 2.30 p.m., and run, via Mitcham Dairy, to Knoxville.” [Advertiser 26 Jun 1903 advert]
“Respectable Girl, assist housework, fond children. — Mrs. Couyan's [sic], care Mr. Peter Waite's Lodge, Urrbrae.” [Advertiser 2 Aug 1905 advert]
“A wedding was solemnised at the Urrbrae Lodge, Fullarton, the residence of the bride's parents, by the Rev. A. J. Finch, of Norwood, on May 17. The contracting parties were Athol Charles, youngest son of the late Mr. George and Mrs. Binney, of Kingswood, and Rita May, eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. F. Couzens, of Fullarton.” [The Mail 31 May 1924]
“Urrbrae homestead. . . The lodge is at the main entrance. The structures and the orchard and flower garden have been kept in order since the death of Mr. and Mrs. Waite. The custodians arc three long-service employes of the place, the caretaker (Mr. R. Halden) having worked there for about 21 years, the gardener (Mr. F. Couzens) for 20 years, and their assistant (Mr. J. Bradey) for 22 years. At present the estate is being utilized for grazing purposes.” [Register 24 Jun 1924]
“When Mr. Peter Waite bequeathed the Waite grounds to the University Council he desired a certain area to be preserved as a park, and it was planted as an arboretum. All except a few original trees have been planted within the past five or six years. . . the avenue from the Urrbrae lodge is bordered with great Sugar Gums, and along the boundary fences pines of three or four species have been planted.” [The Mail 4 Aug 1934]
“COUZENS.—On July 23 (suddenly), at her residence, corner of Cross and Fullarton roads, Fullarton, Martha Jane, the dearly beloved wife of Frederick Charles Couzens and loving mother of Fred, Rita, Urrbrae, Keith, George, Melba, Leonard and the late Jack. Aged 72 years. Sadly missed.” [Advertiser 24 Jul 1947]
“A walk through the arboretum with Mr. Couzens is a most interesting and instructive experience as he knows the name, the age, the natural habitat, and the history of every tree. They are planted in grassland which, except for a circle round the trees when they are young, has never been cultivated since the first plantings took place. The grass growth is controlled by sheep. . For the first four or five years the trees are watered in the summer.” [Chronicle 20 May 1948]
“COUZENS. — On February 4, suddenly, at the residence of his son (Mr. G. Couzens), Semaphore, Frederick Charles, the dearly beloved husband of the late Martha Jane Couzens, of Urrbrae Lodge, Glen Osmond, and loving father of Fred, Rita, Urrbrae, Keith, George, Melba, Leonard and the late Jack. Aged 75 years. Reunited.” [Advertiser 6 Feb 1950]
“the late Mr. Frederick Charles Couzens. . . his Funeral will leave his late residence, Urrbrae Lodge, Glen Osmond. . . for the Mitcham Cemetery.” [Advertiser 6 Feb 1950]
It was so opposite of traditional Masonic items by being tasteless bling that I had to have it as a lark.
I gave this watch to a past master of University Lodge No. 496 as he said that he would wear it to tease some of our elder lodge members. A phrase that was spoken many years ago was: The smaller the (lapel) pin, the greater the Mason. They tended to keep their membership quiet rather than to be so bold.
Masonic Square and Compasses:
The Square and Compasses (or, more correctly, a square and a set of compasses joined together) is the single most identifiable symbol of Freemasonry. Both the square and compasses are architect's tools and are used in Masonic ritual as emblems to teach symbolic lessons. Some Lodges and rituals explain these symbols as lessons in conduct: for example, Duncan's Masonic Monitor of 1866 explains them as: "The square, to square our actions; The compasses, to circumscribe and keep us within bounds with all mankind".
However, as Freemasonry is non-dogmatic, there is no general interpretation for these symbols (or any Masonic symbol) that is used by Freemasonry as a whole.
Square and Compasses:
Source: Mackey's Encyclopedia of Freemasonry
These two symbols have been so long and so universally combined — to teach us, as says an early instruction, "to square our actions and to keep them within due bounds," they are so seldom seen apart, but are so kept together, either as two Great Lights, or as a jewel worn once by the Master of the Lodge, now by the Past Master—that they have come at last to be recognized as the proper badge of a Master Mason, just as the Triple Tau is of a Royal Arch Mason or the Passion Cross of a Knight Templar.
So universally has this symbol been recognized, even by the profane world, as the peculiar characteristic of Freemasonry, that it has recently been made in the United States the subject of a legal decision. A manufacturer of flour having made, in 1873, an application to the Patent Office for permission to adopt the Square and Compasses as a trade-mark, the Commissioner of Patents, .J. M. Thatcher, refused the permission as the mark was a Masonic symbol.
If this emblem were something other than precisely what it is—either less known", less significant, or fully and universally understood—all this might readily be admitted. But, Considering its peculiar character and relation to the public, an anomalous question is presented. There can be no doubt that this device, so commonly worn and employed by Masons, has an established mystic significance, universally recognized as existing; whether comprehended by all or not, is not material to this issue. In view of the magnitude and extent of the Masonic organization, it is impossible to divest its symbols, or at least this particular symbol—perhaps the best known of all—of its ordinary signification, wherever displaced, either as an arbitrary character or otherwise.
It will be universally understood, or misunderstood, as having a Masonic significance; and, therefore, as a trade-mark, must constantly work deception. Nothing could be more mischievous than to create as a monopoly, and uphold by the poser of lacy anything so calculated. as applied to purposes of trade. to be misinterpreted, to mislead all classes, and to constantly foster suggestions of mystery in affairs of business (see Infringing upon Freemasonry, also Imitative Societies, and Clandestine).
In a religious work by John Davies, entitled Summa Totalis, or All in All and the Same Forever, printed in 1607, we find an allusion to the Square and Compasses by a profane in a really Masonic sense. The author, who proposes to describe mystically the form of the Deity, says in his dedication:
Yet I this forme of formelesse Deity,
Drewe by the Squire and Compasse of our Creed.
In Masonic symbolism the Square and Compasses refer to the Freemason's duty to the Craft and to himself; hence it is properly a symbol of brotherhood, and there significantly adopted as the badge or token of the Fraternity.
Berage, in his work on the higher Degrees, Les plus secrets Mystéres des Hauts Grades, or The Most Secret Mysteries of the High Grades, gives a new interpretation to the symbol. He says: "The Square and the Compasses represent the union of the Old and New Testaments. None of the high Degrees recognize this interpretation, although their symbolism of the two implements differs somewhat from that of Symbolic Freemasonry.
The Square is with them peculiarly appropriated to the lower Degrees, as founded on the Operative Art; while the Compasses, as an implement of higher character and uses, is attributed to the Decrees, which claim to have a more elevated and philosophical foundation. Thus they speak of the initiate, when he passes from the Blue Lodge to the Lodge of Perfection, as 'passing from the Square to the Compasses,' to indicate a progressive elevation in his studies. Yet even in the high Degrees, the square and compasses combined retain their primitive signification as a symbol of brotherhood and as a badge of the Order."
Square and Compass:
Source: The Builder October 1916
By Bro. B. C. Ward, Iowa
Worshipful Master and Brethren: Let us behold the glorious beauty that lies hidden beneath the symbolism of the Square and Compass; and first as to the Square. Geometry, the first and noblest of the sciences, is the basis on which the superstructure of Masonry has been erected. As you know, the word "Geometry" is derived from two Greek words which mean "to measure the earth," so that Geometry originated in measurement; and in those early days, when land first began to be measured, the Square, being a right angle, was the instrument used, so that in time the Square began to symbolize the Earth. And later it began to symbolize, Masonically, the earthly-in man, that is man's lower nature, and still later it began to symbolize man's duty in his earthly relations, or his moral obligations to his Fellowmen. The symbolism of the Square is as ancient as the Pyramids. The Egyptians used it in building the Pyramids. The base of every pyramid is a perfect square, and to the Egyptians the Square was their highest and most sacred emblem. Even the Chinese many, many centuries ago used the Square to represent Good, and Confucius in his writings speaks of the Square to represent a Just man.
As Masons we have adopted the 47th Problem of Euclid as the rule by which to determine or prove a perfect Square. Many of us remember with what interest we solved that problem in our school days. The Square has become our most significant Emblem. It rests upon the open Bible on this altar; it is one of the three great Lights; and it is the chief ornament of the Worshipful Master. There is a good reason why this distinction has been conferred upon the Square. There can be nothing truer than a perfect Square--a right angle. Hence the Square has become an emblem of Perfection.
Now a few words as to the Compass: Astronomy was the second great science promulgated among men. In the process of Man's evolution there came a time when he began to look up to the stars and wonder at the vaulted Heavens above him. When he began to study the stars, he found that the Square was not adapted to the measurement of the Heavens. He must have circular measure; he needed to draw a circle from a central point, and so the Compass was employed. By the use of the Compass man began to study the starry Heavens, and as the Square primarily symbolized the Earth, the Compass began to symbolize the Heavens, the celestial canopy, the study of which has led men to think of God, and adore Him as the Supreme Architect of the Universe. In later times the Compass began to symbolize the spiritual or higher nature of man, and it is a significant fact that the circumference of a circle, which is a line without end, has become an emblem of Eternity and symbolizes Divinity; so the Compass, and the circle drawn by the Compass, both point men Heavenward and Godward.
The Masonic teaching concerning the two points of the Compass is very interesting and instructive. The novitiate in Masonry, as he kneels at this altar, and asks for Light sees the Square, which symbolizes his lower nature, he may well note the position of the Compass. As he takes another step, and asks for more Light, the position of the Compass is changed somewhat, symbolizing that his spiritual nature can, in some measure, overcome his evil tendencies. As he takes another step in Masonry, and asks for further Light, and hears the significant words, "and God said let there be Light, and there was Light," he sees the Compass in new light; and for the first time he sees the meaning, thus unmistakably alluding to the sacred and eternal truth that as the Heavens are higher than the Earth, so the spiritual is higher than the material, and the spiritual in man must have its proper place, and should be above his lower nature, and dominate all his thoughts and actions. That eminent Philosopher, Edmund Burke, once said, "It is ordained that men of intemperate passions cannot be free. Their passions forge the chains which bind them, and make them slaves." Burke was right. Masonry, through the beautiful symbolism of the Compass, tells us how we can be free men, by permitting the spiritual within us to overcome our evil tendencies, and dominate all our thoughts and actions. Brethren, sometimes in the silent quiet hour, as we think of this conflict between our lower and higher natures, we sometimes say in the words of another, "Show me the way and let me bravely climb to where all conflicts with the flesh shall cease. Show me that way. Show me the way up to a higher plane where my body shall be servant of my Soul. Show me that way."
Brethren, if that prayer expresses desire of our hearts, let us take heed to the beautiful teachings of the Compass, which silently and persistently tells each one of us,
"You should not in the valley stay
While the great horizons stretch away
The very cliffs that wall you round
Are ladders up to higher ground.
And Heaven draws near as you ascend,
The Breeze invites, the Stars befriend.
All things are beckoning to the Best,
Then climb toward God and find sweet Rest.”
The secrets of Freemasonry are concerned with its traditional modes of recognition. It is not a secret society, since all members are free to acknowledge their membership and will do so in response to enquiries for respectable reasons. Its constitutions and rules are available to the public. There is no secret about any of its aims and principles. Like many other societies, it regards some of its internal affairs as private matters for its members. In history there have been times and places where promoting equality, freedom of thought or liberty of conscience was dangerous. Most importantly though is a question of perspective. Each aspect of the craft has a meaning. Freemasonry has been described as a system of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols. Such characteristics as virtue, honour and mercy, such virtues as temperance, fortitude, prudence and justice are empty clichés and hollow words unless presented within an ordered and closed framework. The lessons are not secret but the presentation is kept private to promote a clearer understanding in good time. It is also possible to view Masonic secrecy not as secrecy in and of itself, but rather as a symbol of privacy and discretion. By not revealing Masonic secrets, or acknowledging the many published exposures, freemasons demonstrate that they are men of discretion, worthy of confidences, and that they place a high value on their word and bond.
Masonic Square and Compasses.
The Square and Compasses (or, more correctly, a square and a set of compasses joined together) is the single most identifiable symbol of Freemasonry. Both the square and compasses are architect's tools and are used in Masonic ritual as emblems to teach symbolic lessons. Some Lodges and rituals explain these symbols as lessons in conduct: for example, Duncan's Masonic Monitor of 1866 explains them as: "The square, to square our actions; The compasses, to circumscribe and keep us within bounds with all mankind".
However, as Freemasonry is non-dogmatic, there is no general interpretation for these symbols (or any Masonic symbol) that is used by Freemasonry as a whole.
Square and Compasses:
Source: Mackey's Encyclopedia of Freemasonry
These two symbols have been so long and so universally combined — to teach us, as says an early instruction, "to square our actions and to keep them within due bounds," they are so seldom seen apart, but are so kept together, either as two Great Lights, or as a jewel worn once by the Master of the Lodge, now by the Past Master—that they have come at last to be recognized as the proper badge of a Master Mason, just as the Triple Tau is of a Royal Arch Mason or the Passion Cross of a Knight Templar.
So universally has this symbol been recognized, even by the profane world, as the peculiar characteristic of Freemasonry, that it has recently been made in the United States the subject of a legal decision. A manufacturer of flour having made, in 1873, an application to the Patent Office for permission to adopt the Square and Compasses as a trade-mark, the Commissioner of Patents, .J. M. Thatcher, refused the permission as the mark was a Masonic symbol.
If this emblem were something other than precisely what it is—either less known", less significant, or fully and universally understood—all this might readily be admitted. But, Considering its peculiar character and relation to the public, an anomalous question is presented. There can be no doubt that this device, so commonly worn and employed by Masons, has an established mystic significance, universally recognized as existing; whether comprehended by all or not, is not material to this issue. In view of the magnitude and extent of the Masonic organization, it is impossible to divest its symbols, or at least this particular symbol—perhaps the best known of all—of its ordinary signification, wherever displaced, either as an arbitrary character or otherwise.
It will be universally understood, or misunderstood, as having a Masonic significance; and, therefore, as a trade-mark, must constantly work deception. Nothing could be more mischievous than to create as a monopoly, and uphold by the poser of lacy anything so calculated. as applied to purposes of trade. to be misinterpreted, to mislead all classes, and to constantly foster suggestions of mystery in affairs of business (see Infringing upon Freemasonry, also Imitative Societies, and Clandestine).
In a religious work by John Davies, entitled Summa Totalis, or All in All and the Same Forever, printed in 1607, we find an allusion to the Square and Compasses by a profane in a really Masonic sense. The author, who proposes to describe mystically the form of the Deity, says in his dedication:
Yet I this forme of formelesse Deity,
Drewe by the Squire and Compasse of our Creed.
In Masonic symbolism the Square and Compasses refer to the Freemason's duty to the Craft and to himself; hence it is properly a symbol of brotherhood, and there significantly adopted as the badge or token of the Fraternity.
Berage, in his work on the higher Degrees, Les plus secrets Mystéres des Hauts Grades, or The Most Secret Mysteries of the High Grades, gives a new interpretation to the symbol. He says: "The Square and the Compasses represent the union of the Old and New Testaments. None of the high Degrees recognize this interpretation, although their symbolism of the two implements differs somewhat from that of Symbolic Freemasonry.
The Square is with them peculiarly appropriated to the lower Degrees, as founded on the Operative Art; while the Compasses, as an implement of higher character and uses, is attributed to the Decrees, which claim to have a more elevated and philosophical foundation. Thus they speak of the initiate, when he passes from the Blue Lodge to the Lodge of Perfection, as 'passing from the Square to the Compasses,' to indicate a progressive elevation in his studies. Yet even in the high Degrees, the square and compasses combined retain their primitive signification as a symbol of brotherhood and as a badge of the Order."
Square and Compass:
Source: The Builder October 1916
By Bro. B. C. Ward, Iowa
Worshipful Master and Brethren: Let us behold the glorious beauty that lies hidden beneath the symbolism of the Square and Compass; and first as to the Square. Geometry, the first and noblest of the sciences, is the basis on which the superstructure of Masonry has been erected. As you know, the word "Geometry" is derived from two Greek words which mean "to measure the earth," so that Geometry originated in measurement; and in those early days, when land first began to be measured, the Square, being a right angle, was the instrument used, so that in time the Square began to symbolize the Earth. And later it began to symbolize, Masonically, the earthly-in man, that is man's lower nature, and still later it began to symbolize man's duty in his earthly relations, or his moral obligations to his Fellowmen. The symbolism of the Square is as ancient as the Pyramids. The Egyptians used it in building the Pyramids. The base of every pyramid is a perfect square, and to the Egyptians the Square was their highest and most sacred emblem. Even the Chinese many, many centuries ago used the Square to represent Good, and Confucius in his writings speaks of the Square to represent a Just man.
As Masons we have adopted the 47th Problem of Euclid as the rule by which to determine or prove a perfect Square. Many of us remember with what interest we solved that problem in our school days. The Square has become our most significant Emblem. It rests upon the open Bible on this altar; it is one of the three great Lights; and it is the chief ornament of the Worshipful Master. There is a good reason why this distinction has been conferred upon the Square. There can be nothing truer than a perfect Square--a right angle. Hence the Square has become an emblem of Perfection.
Now a few words as to the Compass: Astronomy was the second great science promulgated among men. In the process of Man's evolution there came a time when he began to look up to the stars and wonder at the vaulted Heavens above him. When he began to study the stars, he found that the Square was not adapted to the measurement of the Heavens. He must have circular measure; he needed to draw a circle from a central point, and so the Compass was employed. By the use of the Compass man began to study the starry Heavens, and as the Square primarily symbolized the Earth, the Compass began to symbolize the Heavens, the celestial canopy, the study of which has led men to think of God, and adore Him as the Supreme Architect of the Universe. In later times the Compass began to symbolize the spiritual or higher nature of man, and it is a significant fact that the circumference of a circle, which is a line without end, has become an emblem of Eternity and symbolizes Divinity; so the Compass, and the circle drawn by the Compass, both point men Heavenward and Godward.
The Masonic teaching concerning the two points of the Compass is very interesting and instructive. The novitiate in Masonry, as he kneels at this altar, and asks for Light sees the Square, which symbolizes his lower nature, he may well note the position of the Compass. As he takes another step, and asks for more Light, the position of the Compass is changed somewhat, symbolizing that his spiritual nature can, in some measure, overcome his evil tendencies. As he takes another step in Masonry, and asks for further Light, and hears the significant words, "and God said let there be Light, and there was Light," he sees the Compass in new light; and for the first time he sees the meaning, thus unmistakably alluding to the sacred and eternal truth that as the Heavens are higher than the Earth, so the spiritual is higher than the material, and the spiritual in man must have its proper place, and should be above his lower nature, and dominate all his thoughts and actions. That eminent Philosopher, Edmund Burke, once said, "It is ordained that men of intemperate passions cannot be free. Their passions forge the chains which bind them, and make them slaves." Burke was right. Masonry, through the beautiful symbolism of the Compass, tells us how we can be free men, by permitting the spiritual within us to overcome our evil tendencies, and dominate all our thoughts and actions. Brethren, sometimes in the silent quiet hour, as we think of this conflict between our lower and higher natures, we sometimes say in the words of another, "Show me the way and let me bravely climb to where all conflicts with the flesh shall cease. Show me that way. Show me the way up to a higher plane where my body shall be servant of my Soul. Show me that way."
Brethren, if that prayer expresses desire of our hearts, let us take heed to the beautiful teachings of the Compass, which silently and persistently tells each one of us,
"You should not in the valley stay
While the great horizons stretch away
The very cliffs that wall you round
Are ladders up to higher ground.
And Heaven draws near as you ascend,
The Breeze invites, the Stars befriend.
All things are beckoning to the Best,
Then climb toward God and find sweet Rest."
Walk around Rucker's Hill, Northcote retracing places surveyed in 1982-3 for heritage study, images using an old 21mm OM manual lens:
Northcote Free Library
185-187 High Street NORTHCOTE, Darebin City
Designer: local architect Edward Twentyman Jnr
`Northcote's Carnegie Library
The idea for a library in Northcote was first raised in the early 1880s. In 1883 the Northcote Council agreed to set aside a room in the new Northcote Town Hall for use as a library. However it was not until 1890 that the library was established.
For a fee of 10 shillings per annum the residents of Northcote could access the 3,000 volumes held in the library. The library was housed in the Town Surveyorâs office, a mere 25 foot by 12 foot room.
The library was administered by a committee. This committee comprised of Councilors, ratepayers and library subscribers. To generate additional income to maintain the library the Committee organized various fund raising events. In 1898 these events raised £103. Given that the library only had £3 in the bank at that time, this was an invaluable contribution.
Efforts began to build a new library and the Northcote Council agreed to contribute £250 towards a new library providing the State Government did the same. The Government would only agree to £100 so the issue lapsed.
The Secretary of the Library Committee, R. J. Whalley was dissatisfied with this state of affairs and decided to approach the Andrew Carnegie Foundation for funds to build a new library. The Andrew Carnegie Foundation was established by steel magnate Andrew Carnegie to fund charitable works around the world. He was a strong supporter of public libraries.
On 21st September 1907 Whalley wrote to the Foundation, asking for £1,500 to build a small library or Mechanics Institute. The Foundation agreed providing certain conditions were met. These were, that the Council must agree to provide ongoing funding, that the library must be free, and the building plans must be approved by the Foundation. A meeting of the Council accepted these conditions, pledging £200 per annum to purchase new materials and maintain the building.
The Foundation agreed to pay £3,000 for the building of the library, to be paid in three £1,000 amounts. The Council purchased a block of land on the corner of James and High streets as a site for the new library. A Federation Free Classical design by Edward Twentyman Jr. was selected, and then approved by the Foundation. A quote for £2,756 was accepted from E. Bowness to build the library.
On 22nd February 1911, the Mayor Ralph Archibald laid the foundation stone. Beneath the stone was placed some Melbourne newspapers, a copy of the Northcote Leader, budget figures from the Council, a library catalogue and some coins.
The opening of the Northcote Free Library, on August 21st 1911, was a major event in the town and was suitably celebrated with a number of speeches. Entertainment was provided by John Amadio who played a number of flute pieces, accompanied by Mrs. Whalley on the pianoforte. There were also recitals by Miss Elsie Berry and Mr. Sol Bloom.
The Governor of Victoria, Sir John Fuller was the guest of honour, commenting that â...reading in itself was all very well, reading might be instructive, or it might be a pastime, or it might be actually harmful.â
The new library had five rooms, i.e. , the Magazine Room, the Newspaper Room, the Main Room (housing the book collections), a Meeting Room and a room probably designated for study purposes. A stand in the centre of the main room allowed the Librarian to overlook the library ensuring order.
The âfreeâ library had an immediate impact in the community, as 300 new members were registered in only the first three days of opening.
In July 1985 the Northcote Library moved to new premises in Separation Street. The original Carnegie building was then converted to Council offices.' (Darebin Library web site 2014)
`The Northcote Free Library is, externally, a near-original example of an imposing classical revival style building which has been designed as a complement to the Town Hall. It is also one of the few known Carnegie libraries in the State and has served as a public building over a long period.
The design, possibly to Carnegie's dictation, was of a conservative classical revival manner which harmonised, by the repetition of prominent pediments, with the town hall of 1888. The stylised ornament, as seen in the pilaster capitals, the widely spaced triglyphs, and the simple parapet entablature, and the axial open planning of the interior, suggest the influence of the Beaux Arts. The building is single-storey, raised as a high, quarry faced bluestone plinth. The projecting portico has coupled Tuscan columns and is flanked by two pedimented wings set back from the street. Window details, the foliated tympanums, the fenestration colonettes, and the balustrading are all derived from the earlier building. Alterations include the painting of the render the replacement of the entry doors, the absence of the handles from the portico urns and the replacement of the former grassed, rockery enclosed forecourt, by asphalt. The interior has been renovated.' Ward 2000
The Berufsfeuerwehr Linz (professional fire brigade Linz) in cooperation with the Upper Austrian fire brigade school shows a virtual fire brigade in Deep Space 8K.
With the education initiative “GEMEINSAM.SICHER.FEUERWEHR“, the Austrian Fire Brigades want to make an important and significant contribution to fire and disaster prevention education in kindergartens and schools. They receive important information and instructive download materials for training.
Credit: Magdalena Sick-Leitner
Catherine camps it up with her new hat. Says this is her Lady Gaga outfit, but adds that she's not going to wear a meat dress. When patients go to the bathroom they have to wheel their fluids in with them.
Chemo day is the best day of the week because the drugs are so good—the addition of a boost of steroids helps a lot. And we get to see the doctor and nurse practitioner who can help with any issues.
It's an interesting place to hang out because there are other patients to watch and wonder about. Some are instructive. The man in the chair next to Catherine's was so upbeat, she introduced herself to him and asked his story. He was doing 8 rounds of chemo for liver cancer and, get this, his wife had done 6 rounds of chemo just 6 months before for colon cancer. They were competitive that way he said. He told Catherine it was important to keep a positive attitude.
found this suite of photographs at The Brass Armadillo Antique Mall, which sits beside I-70 east of the sports complex. it's always been a happy hunting ground for me. it was there that i saw the two best photographs i ever saw and didn't buy.
these photographs aren't great, but they are instructive of a particular way of life at a particular moment in our history. there is much to admire in good old American know-how and ambition. my only quibble is that i don't believe that is all there is.
The complete video can be viewed here. www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_mr-sPXX_k To view all my tutorials, go to my "Planetary Imaging Channel"> www.youtube.com/channel/UCuPgvVtv5h7Z3ak_z7Pn0pg?view_as=... This video goes back a couple of years and never posted until now. Even though I'm using better animation software today, making the latter part of this tutorial obsolete, it's quite instructive as to how the planet map is initially constructed. At some point in the future I will update the latter part to show how I used Ephemerides to render the flattened map back into a virtual, 3 dimensional rotating sphere as seen in the posted rotations.
Il G.46 fu il primo nuovo progetto della Fiat dopo la fine della II Guerra Mondiale (1946). Il prototipo volò per la prima volta nel febbraio 1948, e già i primi collaudi misero in luce le eccellenti caratteristiche di volo (manovrabilità e affidabilità in acrobazia), dovute anche al fatto che il G.46 derivava dai monoplani Fiat costruiti nella seconda fase della guerra. Usato dalle scuole di volo per il 1° e 2° periodo di addestramento fu acquistato in oltre 140 esemplari dall'A.M.I., 70 dall'aeronautica argentina, dall'Austria e dalla Siria. I Fiat G.46 in Italia furono assegnati alla S.V. di Galatina (Lecce), ai vari C.A.V. , alla Scuola di Guerra aerea di Firenze-Peretola, alla A.A. di Nisida e ad altri Comandi in Sicilia e Sardegna. La produzione di quest'aereo terminò nel 1952 e nel 1958 l'A.M.I. iniziò la cessione di una cinquantina di esemplari ai vari aeroclub italiani. L'esemplare esposto al Parco Tematico dell'Aviazione è un G.46 3A con MM. 52805 appartenuto alla S.G. (Scuola di Guerra Aerea) di Firenze dal 1951 fino alla fine del 1959, dopodichè fu immatricolato civile con la sigla I-AEKE.
The G 46 was the first new project of FIAT manufacturer after the 2nd World War (1946). The first prototype flew in February 1948 and even from the first test-flights it proved its excellent performance ( manageability during the acrobatic shows) due at the development of the G 46 from the FIAT monoplane built at the end of 2nd World War. The G 46 was used as trainer airplane for the 1st and 2nd instructive period of the pilot cadets in several Italian Military Flying Schools. Around 140 of these planes were bought from Italian Military Air Force, 70 from Argentina Air Force and other were bought from Austria and Siria. In Italy, the Fiat G 46 was operative in the Flying School of Galatina (Lecce), in different Flying Trainer Centres (C.A.V.), in the Air-war School of Florence - Peretola, in the A.A. of Nisida and in other different bases in Sicily and Sardinia. The production of these planes ended in 1952 and in 1958, by the Italian air force, 50 of these aircraft were given to the Italian Aero - clubs. The model in exhibition, a G 46 - 3A single-seat, presents code numbers and emblems of the airport of Florence - Peretola, where was operative from 1951 to 1959 and then it had a civil registration with marking I-AEKE.
MAHAVATAR BABAJI CAVE
Mahāvatār Bābājī (literally; Great Avatar Dear Father) is the name given to an Indian saint and yogi by Lahiri Mahasaya and several of his disciples,[2] who reported meeting him between 1861 and 1935. Some of these meetings were described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first-hand report of Yogananda's own meeting with the yogi.[3]Another first hand account was given by Yukteswar Giri in his book The Holy Science.[4] According to Sri M's autobiography (Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master) Babaji, was Shiva. In the second last chapter of his book, he mentions Babaji changing his form to that of Shiva. All of these accounts, along with additional reported meetings, are described in various biographies.[5][6][7]According to Yogananda's autobiography, Babaji has resided for at least hundreds of years in the remote Himalayan regions of India, seen in person by only a small number of disciples and others.[3][8] The death less Master is more than 2000 years old. He belongs to a very powerful lineage of Siddha Boganthar and Rishi Agastya as his Gurus. He acquired this deathless, non perishable body through tough yogik kriyas.
Again, according to his autobiography, shortly before Yogananda left for America in 1920, Babaji came to his home in Calcutta, where the young monk sat deeply praying for divine assurance regarding the mission he was about to undertake. Babaji said to him: "Follow the behest of your guru and go to America. Fear not; you shall be protected. You are the one I have chosen to spread the message of Kriya Yoga in the West
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood. One source of information is the book Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshal Govindan.[9]According to Govindan, Babaji was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his parents. [8] V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah founded on 17 October 1952, (they claim – at the request of Babaji) a new organization, "Kriya Babaji Sangah," dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953 Mahavatar Babaji told them that he was born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal village now known as Parangipettai, Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, India.[10] Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organizations claim his place and date of birth.[10] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is Nagarajan.[9][10]
In Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi, many references are made to Mahavatar Babaji, including from Lahirī and Sri Yukteshwar.[3] In his book The Second Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ went to India and conferred with Mahavatar Babaji.[8] This would make Babaji at least 2000 years old.[11] According to Govindan's book, Babaji Nagaraj's father was the priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which he believed to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one rare jackfruit for a family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that time. He found the jackfruit when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his mother came to know about it, she flew in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived. Later on he thanked God for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or illusion. His Love for his mother became unconditional and detached."[9]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a slave in Calcutta (now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he freed Nagaraj shortly thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of wandering sannyāsin due to their radiant faces and love for God. During the next few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy scriptures like the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita.
According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult journey on foot and by boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj met Siddha Bhogarnathar and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive yogic sadhana for a long time with him. Bhogarnathar inspired Nagaraj to seek his initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha Agastya. Babaji became a disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of Kriya Kundalini Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and spent eighteen months practising yogic kriyataught to him by Siddha Agastya and Bhogarnathar. Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[9]
It is claimed that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A. Ramaiah, a young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T. Neelakantan, a famous journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of the Theosophical Society and mentor of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have appeared to each of them independently and then brought them together to work for his Mission in 1942
By Kailash Mansarovar Foundation Swami Bikash Giri www.sumeruparvat.com , www.naturalitem.com
The Chapel of Saint Joseph in Toledo, where this painting hung above the north altar, was established by Martín Ramírez, whose patron saint, Martin of Tours, is the subject here. As a soldier in Roman France, Martin cut his cloak in half to share it with a beggar he encountered. Christ later appeared to Martin in a dream wearing the makeshift cape and saying, "What thou hast done for the poor man, thou hast done for me." Martin was then baptized, and dedicated his life to Christianity. Venerated for his charity, he was zealous in making converts to the church.
The figures positioned in the extreme foreground loom as if perched on a high ledge, while the background recedes quickly to a distant vista—not of Amiens where the story took place, but Toledo. Time is likewise transformed as the fourth-century saint wears contemporary armor. These deliberate shifts of time and place hint at Toledo's role in the Counter-Reformation, suggesting that all Toledans should emulate the saint's charitable behavior.
A small replica of this subject, one of five known, may have been painted by El Greco's son, Jorge Manuel Theotokopoulos. It provides an instructive comparison with El Greco's own works. Here the brushstrokes are shorter and more hesitant; the elongated figures of the original are further distorted; and the saint's serene expression is transformed by the twisting curl of his lip.
El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos)
El Greco (painter)
Greek, 1541 - 1614
Saint Martin and the Beggar, 1597/1599
oil on canvas with wooden strip added at bottom
overall: 193.5 x 103 cm (76 3/16 x 40 9/16 in.) framed: 215.3 x 135.9 x 12.7 cm (84 3/4 x 53 1/2 x 5 in.)
Widener Collection
1942.9.25
Retford - St Swithun's Church
Detail: Angel.
The church was founded in 1258, but the current building is almost completely the work of restorers of 1658, 1854-5 and 1905.
St Swithun’s is a cruciform stone building consisting of chancel, with vestry, nave aisles, transepts, north chantry chapel, south porch and a 90' central embattled tower with 8 pinnacles, containing a clock and 10 bells. The oldest, virtually untouched, part is the north transept, although it has now been transformed into a chapel as a war memorial.
The tower and chancel collapsed in 1651 and were rebuilt in 1658. The tower is supported by four massive arches and the nave and aisles are separated by arcades of five bays.
There is a stone pulpit, an eagle lectern in oak, and a large organ erected in 1841. The south porch built in 1852.
In 1884-5 G G Place re-built the north aisle (with capitals imitating the 13th century ones), then north porch, north chancel aisle, clerestory, battlements and the east window of 13th century stonework. (All of these were renovated in 1905.) Galleries were removed and new seats and roof installed.
G F Bodley re-built the chantry chapel in 1873 and refurbished the chancel.
New choir stalls were erected in 1889 and in 1910 and 1914 the corporation presented new stalls for its own use.
In the north transept is an incised slab to Henry Smyth (d1496) and Sir Whatton Amcotts (d1807) by William Kinnard, architect.
The Victorian stained glass is instructive with work by Clayton & Bell, Kempe & Co, O’Connor, Hardman, Wailes and one by a local, George Shaw.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
Guide
Although there are records of a church on this site in the 13th century, the church today is a typical large town church, built on a cruciform plan with a central tower. The oldest part as it now stands is the North Transept which today is called the Lady Chapel and used for weekday or other small services. The central pillar and its two arches belong to the 14th century and still display their original painted decoration. Anciently there were two chantry chapels here known as Our Lady's Chantry and St Trinity Chantry. Their altars were against the East wall which may have been further to the East than it is now. The purpose of a chantry was to provide regular Masses for the souls of departed benefactors. A document of 1535 says that St Swithun's had four chantries and there may have been two more in the South Transept or elsewhere in the church. The neighbouring Chapelgate probably takes its name from the existence of the chantry chapels. The North Transept chapel is also a war memorial and it houses the banner of the Borough of East Retford.
The rest of the church is basically of the 15th century and is in the style often called perpendicular. The central tower collapsed in a storm in 1651, destroying much of the Chancel and South transept. It was rebuilt in 1658 and from outside it clearly has a 17th century look to it. Inside, massive piers were built to carry its weight and these low, heavy crossing arches are a feature of the church today. Looking eastward from the nave, the columns of the earlier arches can be seen, much more slender and with a much higher springing. Under the tower, on the South side high above the vicar's stall, although not easily seen with the naked eye, is a stone bearing the inscription Ano Mundi 5226 Ano Christie 1582. It was moved to there from the chantry in 1873.
There are many memorials in the church. The oldest one is a floor slab in the North-East corner of the North Transept chapel. It dates from 1496 and is in memory of Henry Smyth, but most of the memorials are of the 18th and 19th centuries.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
www.visitoruk.com/Retford/st-swithuns-church-C567-AT5017....
Retford - St Swithun's Church
Detail: Musical Angel.
The church was founded in 1258, but the current building is almost completely the work of restorers of 1658, 1854-5 and 1905.
St Swithun’s is a cruciform stone building consisting of chancel, with vestry, nave aisles, transepts, north chantry chapel, south porch and a 90' central embattled tower with 8 pinnacles, containing a clock and 10 bells. The oldest, virtually untouched, part is the north transept, although it has now been transformed into a chapel as a war memorial.
The tower and chancel collapsed in 1651 and were rebuilt in 1658. The tower is supported by four massive arches and the nave and aisles are separated by arcades of five bays.
There is a stone pulpit, an eagle lectern in oak, and a large organ erected in 1841. The south porch built in 1852.
In 1884-5 G G Place re-built the north aisle (with capitals imitating the 13th century ones), then north porch, north chancel aisle, clerestory, battlements and the east window of 13th century stonework. (All of these were renovated in 1905.) Galleries were removed and new seats and roof installed.
G F Bodley re-built the chantry chapel in 1873 and refurbished the chancel.
New choir stalls were erected in 1889 and in 1910 and 1914 the corporation presented new stalls for its own use.
In the north transept is an incised slab to Henry Smyth (d1496) and Sir Whatton Amcotts (d1807) by William Kinnard, architect.
The Victorian stained glass is instructive with work by Clayton & Bell, Kempe & Co, O’Connor, Hardman, Wailes and one by a local, George Shaw.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
Guide
Although there are records of a church on this site in the 13th century, the church today is a typical large town church, built on a cruciform plan with a central tower. The oldest part as it now stands is the North Transept which today is called the Lady Chapel and used for weekday or other small services. The central pillar and its two arches belong to the 14th century and still display their original painted decoration. Anciently there were two chantry chapels here known as Our Lady's Chantry and St Trinity Chantry. Their altars were against the East wall which may have been further to the East than it is now. The purpose of a chantry was to provide regular Masses for the souls of departed benefactors. A document of 1535 says that St Swithun's had four chantries and there may have been two more in the South Transept or elsewhere in the church. The neighbouring Chapelgate probably takes its name from the existence of the chantry chapels. The North Transept chapel is also a war memorial and it houses the banner of the Borough of East Retford.
The rest of the church is basically of the 15th century and is in the style often called perpendicular. The central tower collapsed in a storm in 1651, destroying much of the Chancel and South transept. It was rebuilt in 1658 and from outside it clearly has a 17th century look to it. Inside, massive piers were built to carry its weight and these low, heavy crossing arches are a feature of the church today. Looking eastward from the nave, the columns of the earlier arches can be seen, much more slender and with a much higher springing. Under the tower, on the South side high above the vicar's stall, although not easily seen with the naked eye, is a stone bearing the inscription Ano Mundi 5226 Ano Christie 1582. It was moved to there from the chantry in 1873.
There are many memorials in the church. The oldest one is a floor slab in the North-East corner of the North Transept chapel. It dates from 1496 and is in memory of Henry Smyth, but most of the memorials are of the 18th and 19th centuries.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
www.visitoruk.com/Retford/st-swithuns-church-C567-AT5017....
MAHAVATAR BABAJI CAVE
Mahāvatār Bābājī (literally; Great Avatar Dear Father) is the name given to an Indian saint and yogi by Lahiri Mahasaya and several of his disciples,[2] who reported meeting him between 1861 and 1935. Some of these meetings were described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first-hand report of Yogananda's own meeting with the yogi.[3]Another first hand account was given by Yukteswar Giri in his book The Holy Science.[4] According to Sri M's autobiography (Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master) Babaji, was Shiva. In the second last chapter of his book, he mentions Babaji changing his form to that of Shiva. All of these accounts, along with additional reported meetings, are described in various biographies.[5][6][7]According to Yogananda's autobiography, Babaji has resided for at least hundreds of years in the remote Himalayan regions of India, seen in person by only a small number of disciples and others.[3][8] The death less Master is more than 2000 years old. He belongs to a very powerful lineage of Siddha Boganthar and Rishi Agastya as his Gurus. He acquired this deathless, non perishable body through tough yogik kriyas.
Again, according to his autobiography, shortly before Yogananda left for America in 1920, Babaji came to his home in Calcutta, where the young monk sat deeply praying for divine assurance regarding the mission he was about to undertake. Babaji said to him: "Follow the behest of your guru and go to America. Fear not; you shall be protected. You are the one I have chosen to spread the message of Kriya Yoga in the West
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood. One source of information is the book Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshal Govindan.[9]According to Govindan, Babaji was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his parents. [8] V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah founded on 17 October 1952, (they claim – at the request of Babaji) a new organization, "Kriya Babaji Sangah," dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953 Mahavatar Babaji told them that he was born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal village now known as Parangipettai, Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, India.[10] Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organizations claim his place and date of birth.[10] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is Nagarajan.[9][10]
In Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi, many references are made to Mahavatar Babaji, including from Lahirī and Sri Yukteshwar.[3] In his book The Second Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ went to India and conferred with Mahavatar Babaji.[8] This would make Babaji at least 2000 years old.[11] According to Govindan's book, Babaji Nagaraj's father was the priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which he believed to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one rare jackfruit for a family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that time. He found the jackfruit when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his mother came to know about it, she flew in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived. Later on he thanked God for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or illusion. His Love for his mother became unconditional and detached."[9]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a slave in Calcutta (now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he freed Nagaraj shortly thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of wandering sannyāsin due to their radiant faces and love for God. During the next few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy scriptures like the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita.
According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult journey on foot and by boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj met Siddha Bhogarnathar and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive yogic sadhana for a long time with him. Bhogarnathar inspired Nagaraj to seek his initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha Agastya. Babaji became a disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of Kriya Kundalini Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and spent eighteen months practising yogic kriyataught to him by Siddha Agastya and Bhogarnathar. Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[9]
It is claimed that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A. Ramaiah, a young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T. Neelakantan, a famous journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of the Theosophical Society and mentor of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have appeared to each of them independently and then brought them together to work for his Mission in 1942
By Kailash Mansarovar Foundation Swami Bikash Giri www.sumeruparvat.com , www.naturalitem.com
Retford - St Swithun's Church
Detail: Musical Angel.
The church was founded in 1258, but the current building is almost completely the work of restorers of 1658, 1854-5 and 1905.
St Swithun’s is a cruciform stone building consisting of chancel, with vestry, nave aisles, transepts, north chantry chapel, south porch and a 90' central embattled tower with 8 pinnacles, containing a clock and 10 bells. The oldest, virtually untouched, part is the north transept, although it has now been transformed into a chapel as a war memorial.
The tower and chancel collapsed in 1651 and were rebuilt in 1658. The tower is supported by four massive arches and the nave and aisles are separated by arcades of five bays.
There is a stone pulpit, an eagle lectern in oak, and a large organ erected in 1841. The south porch built in 1852.
In 1884-5 G G Place re-built the north aisle (with capitals imitating the 13th century ones), then north porch, north chancel aisle, clerestory, battlements and the east window of 13th century stonework. (All of these were renovated in 1905.) Galleries were removed and new seats and roof installed.
G F Bodley re-built the chantry chapel in 1873 and refurbished the chancel.
New choir stalls were erected in 1889 and in 1910 and 1914 the corporation presented new stalls for its own use.
In the north transept is an incised slab to Henry Smyth (d1496) and Sir Whatton Amcotts (d1807) by William Kinnard, architect.
The Victorian stained glass is instructive with work by Clayton & Bell, Kempe & Co, O’Connor, Hardman, Wailes and one by a local, George Shaw.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
Guide
Although there are records of a church on this site in the 13th century, the church today is a typical large town church, built on a cruciform plan with a central tower. The oldest part as it now stands is the North Transept which today is called the Lady Chapel and used for weekday or other small services. The central pillar and its two arches belong to the 14th century and still display their original painted decoration. Anciently there were two chantry chapels here known as Our Lady's Chantry and St Trinity Chantry. Their altars were against the East wall which may have been further to the East than it is now. The purpose of a chantry was to provide regular Masses for the souls of departed benefactors. A document of 1535 says that St Swithun's had four chantries and there may have been two more in the South Transept or elsewhere in the church. The neighbouring Chapelgate probably takes its name from the existence of the chantry chapels. The North Transept chapel is also a war memorial and it houses the banner of the Borough of East Retford.
The rest of the church is basically of the 15th century and is in the style often called perpendicular. The central tower collapsed in a storm in 1651, destroying much of the Chancel and South transept. It was rebuilt in 1658 and from outside it clearly has a 17th century look to it. Inside, massive piers were built to carry its weight and these low, heavy crossing arches are a feature of the church today. Looking eastward from the nave, the columns of the earlier arches can be seen, much more slender and with a much higher springing. Under the tower, on the South side high above the vicar's stall, although not easily seen with the naked eye, is a stone bearing the inscription Ano Mundi 5226 Ano Christie 1582. It was moved to there from the chantry in 1873.
There are many memorials in the church. The oldest one is a floor slab in the North-East corner of the North Transept chapel. It dates from 1496 and is in memory of Henry Smyth, but most of the memorials are of the 18th and 19th centuries.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
www.visitoruk.com/Retford/st-swithuns-church-C567-AT5017....
Cadishead and Irlam Guardian 1935
LOCAL NOTES
By "QUI VIVE"
Christmas of 1935 will long be memorable on account of the persistent fog of the previous nine to 10 days. Nearly everybody thought we had finished with it at the week-end. Sunday was clear until about 7.0 p.m. when the unwelcome visitation re-appeared in probably a worse form than ever and continued over Monday. It disappeared quite as suddenly as it came during Monday evening and rain and sleet fell on Tuesday, clearing away the snow to greet the dawn of Christmas.
The Post Office authorities have not previously experienced such a busy time in dealing with seasonable missives to friends far and near. The rush was so for halfpenny stamps at Cadishead, that the Post Office was cleared out on Monday evening, but, perhaps needless to say, there was an abundant supply again early on Tuesday morning.
The exhaustive review of the year in other columns of the "Guardian" will be most interesting. It demonstrates very clearly that the Urban Council has had a busy 12 months and the trade of the district has been very favourable compared with other places.
The prospects for the New Year are also exceedingly good. Additions in the Margarine Works and to the Soap Works Toilet Department, are healthy signs and I am told that the Lancashire Steel Corporation, Limited is to participate substantially in the orders for 45,000 tons of metal included in the programme of reconstruction and improvement under the Government-guaranteed loan authorised by the Railway (Agreement) Act, which has received the Royal Assent within the last few days.
Work is proceeding full steam ahead and the Christmas holidays will be a short one. The several days fog played havoc with transport on the Ship Canal, and the coal trimmers for the most part, have had to fall back on the allowances from the Labour Exchange. The Jubilee of the passing of the Ship Canal Bill has passed almost unnoticed, but old residents know full well what the waterway has meant to the district.
I think the Royal Silver Jubilee celebrations stand out in bold relief, as it were, to the year's happenings. Everything passed off so very well. Many old people mention yet the "good do" they had in the large canteen of the Lancashire Steel Corporation, Limited, on May 6th, and the children have their souvenir book among their treasures, to say nothing of the display of fireworks which terminated the day's enjoyment.
The wisdom of the Urban Council in deciding to build a number of smaller houses and eight bungalows, as an experiment, has been emphasised by the disclosures in the recent housing census. Whoever would have thought there were 66 individuals - 24 males and 42 females - living alone in the district, probably in some instances in houses in excess of the accommodation required and beyond their means in regard to rent?
To supplement these, there are also 764 houses in the district each occupied by only two people, and the same remarks will apply. It would appear, therefore that the Council will have considerable difficulty in picking and choosing the tenants for the smaller and much cheaper houses. It may be suggested that more of this type of house be built to accomodate more of these people who could well do with smaller dwellings. That, however, is a matter for the future.
The information furnished by the returns in the Housing census is very useful and instructive in other respects. Of the population of 14,230, a total of 6,143 in Irlam and 5,731 in Cadishead are more than 10 years of age, while in Irlam there are 1,213 children between one and 10 years of age and 923 in Cadishead. Infants under one number 219 - 147 in Irlam and 72 in Cadishead.
Thus Irlam has taken the lead over Cadishead in every detail and is proud of it. Congratulations! Cadishead residents held the lead for many years, but 1935 transferred it. Nobody is grumbling.
What of the year 1936 which will very soon be here? In less than another week, the usual annual resolutions will be made to improve the future. If they could all be kept what a different survey there would be next year end! I sincerely hope 1936 will be a better year in every respect, and I am fully conscious that a great deal will depend upon ourselves as individuals whether it is so or not.END.
Sheila Hilton:
This is the clearest picture I've seen of the old council offices.
Cadishead and Irlam Guardian
1931:
I understand that the incident recorded in the "Guardian" last week of barbed wire having been stretched across Fiddlers Lane,Irlam, causing an accident to a cyclist, has been tracesd, largely as a result of the publicity given to it, to three boys. The eldest is 16 and two are juniors. As anticipated would be the case, it was a "boyish" prank and has served a useful lesson. It will not be repeated by the same boys, and others, who may be roguishly inclined, would do well to take heed.
On the whole education at school and parental control exercise greater restraint upon children to-day than ever before. Many parents can recall their own young days, and will agree that the mischievous and really naughty conduct of young folk to-day is to be contrasted, rather than compared, with what it was 40 or 50 years ago. All the same, there is still room for improvement.
The year has been the leanest for some time, from a municipal housing point of view. No new scheme of buildings has been entered upon by the local authority. The 150 houses decided upon the previous year were completed in the early part of that year. 70 at Higher Irlam and 70 off Lord Street, Cadishead, where a number of new streets have been laid out. The Council will review the wholw position early in the New Year and decide whether it is desirable or not to add further to the 1,260 houses already owned by the local authority.
During the year a supply of electricity talked about has been brought within measurable distance of accomplishment. It is a disappointment to many trades and others that electric light has not been a feature of the Christmas decorations, but this will be the last festival at which gas will serve as the chief illuminant. Connections have been commenced with the mains for private supplies, and if all goes well another month should witness the turning on of the current. Thus the district will be brought into line with other progressive localities and, it is hoped, benefit accordingly.
Extensive developments at the works of the Lancashire Steel Corporation, Limited, have meant a great deal to the district. Many workers enter and leave daily by the special rail and bus facilities that have been provided for their conveyance, thus overcoming the need for the provision of many more houses, which at first was thought to be likely.END.
Christine Maguire:
After reading the article I realised that my Dad, born 1926 spent his early years by gas light and thinking back toi when i was little it makes you realise just how far we have come over the last century.
RC 552 E18 E28217 2007
Offering instructive guidance while avoiding a typical classroom feel, Writing the Critical Essay: An Opposing Viewpoints Guide directly supports student achievement. This exciting new series is specifically designed to help students write effective five-paragraph essays. Writing the Critical Essay: An Opposing Viewpoints Guide has all a student needs to complete an essay on a chosen controversial topic.
Looking at paintings near to can be instructive; often small details have a world within a world. I have chosen both broadly painted work and those with minute detail from a number of collections including the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford and Chicago's Art Institute. The Wallace Collection , Tate Britain, Tate Modern and Dulwich Picture Gallery and The Museu, of Ancient Art Brussels.
Jag är inte här för att skilja ut olikheter; jag är här för att se vad som förenar oss. Humor, respekt, självdistans, behov av kärlek och vänskap, kultur, musik, mat för dagen och tak över huvudet osv osv osv. Känna att vi alla tillhör något: den gemenskap som kallas mänskligheten.
Det spelar ingen roll för mig vilken religion eller nationalitet du tillhör, vilken färg din hud har. Jag bryr mig om dig som individ oavsett din bakgrund. Du ger mig kunskap om din kultur och jag ger dig kunskap om min. Ömsesidig respekt och förståelse är allt jag begär och i flickr's gemenskap är vi alla lika som bär men ändå lite olika. Och det är detta som både förenar oss och visar vår särart och som gör det hela så intressant och lärorikt.
I'm not here to single out differences; I'm here to see what unites us. Humour, respect, self-distance, need for love and friendship, culture, music, daily food and shelter from the night, etc. etc. etc.. Knowing that we all belong to something: the community called humanity.
It doesn't matter to me what religion or nationality you belong to, what color your skin is. I care of you as individual regardless your background. You give me knowledge of your culture and I will give you knowledge of mine. Mutual respect and understanding is all I ask for and in the flickr community, we are all similar as berries (peas in a pod) but still a bit different. And that is what both unites us and shows our peculiar natures that makes it so interesting, informative and instructive. Thanks for being the ones you are and for your support my friends! Have fun!
Mera lingon på det individuella planet/More Lingonberries on an individual level :-)
The second stop on our ''Highlights of Ephesus'' sightseeing excursion was the Ephesus Archaeological Site (Efes Ören Yeri). We entered through upper (south) gate, and began our sightseeing near the State Agora (Devlet Agorasi). One of the more prominent structures in the vicinity of the State Agora was the Temple of Domitian (Domitianus Tapinaği). Here, you can see one of the chambers in the vaulted substructure of the Temple of Domitian, along with a few carved marble tablets that are part of the Inscriptions Museum.
A few details on these ruins:
Temple of Domitian
The area in front of the Water Palace was known as Domitian Square. Just west of the square, there was a temple that was erected in honor of Emperor Domitian; it was built between 81-96 A.D. and included a vaulted substructure. The temple featured columns as well as an altar decorated with warriors and arms, which is now exhibited at the Ephesus Museum. (A nearby informational placard provided more details and images of the Temple of Domitian.)
The Inscriptions Museum
The Inscriptions Museum is housed in the vaulted substructure of the Temple of Domitian. In the corridors, more than 3,000 complete or partial inscriptions are currently preserved. A selected exhibition contains approximately 60 exceptionally instructive examples, including a death sentence against sacrilegious persons, Hellenistic citizenship rights, Imperial letters, honourific inscriptions for the members of the imperial and civic aristocracy, and funerary inscriptions.
Brief History of Ephesus:
Ephesus -- known as Ἔφεσος in Greek and Efes in Turkish -- was an ancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia. It was originally established in the 10th century B.C. by Attic and Ionian Greek colonists. Ephesus flourished after it came under Roman control in 129 B.C., during which time it is estimated to have had a population of 33,500 to 56,000 people. It was renowned for its splendid architecture, including the Temple of Artemis (circa 550 B.C.), which was recognized as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World until it was destroyed during a Goth raid in 268 A.D. During the Byzantine era (395-1308), Emperor Constantine I rebuilt much of the city and erected new public baths. The city was partially destroyed by an earthquake in 614 A.D. and was later sacked by Arabs during the mid 600s and early 700s. Its role as a commercial center declined as its harbor was slowly silted up by the Cayster River and the town lost its trade access to the Aegean Sea. Ephesus eventually fell under Turkish control; after a brief period of renewed prosperity and building during the early 14th century, the city was eventually abandoned by the 15th century. Excavations of the site were conducted by British archaeologists in the 1860s-70s, and later by German and Austrian architects in the 1890s. Today, the Austrian Archaeological Institute still continues ongoing conservation and restoration of Ephesus.
MAHAVATAR BABAJI CAVE
Mahāvatār Bābājī (literally; Great Avatar Dear Father) is the name given to an Indian saint and yogi by Lahiri Mahasaya and several of his disciples,[2] who reported meeting him between 1861 and 1935. Some of these meetings were described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first-hand report of Yogananda's own meeting with the yogi.[3]Another first hand account was given by Yukteswar Giri in his book The Holy Science.[4] According to Sri M's autobiography (Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master) Babaji, was Shiva. In the second last chapter of his book, he mentions Babaji changing his form to that of Shiva. All of these accounts, along with additional reported meetings, are described in various biographies.[5][6][7]According to Yogananda's autobiography, Babaji has resided for at least hundreds of years in the remote Himalayan regions of India, seen in person by only a small number of disciples and others.[3][8] The death less Master is more than 2000 years old. He belongs to a very powerful lineage of Siddha Boganthar and Rishi Agastya as his Gurus. He acquired this deathless, non perishable body through tough yogik kriyas.
Again, according to his autobiography, shortly before Yogananda left for America in 1920, Babaji came to his home in Calcutta, where the young monk sat deeply praying for divine assurance regarding the mission he was about to undertake. Babaji said to him: "Follow the behest of your guru and go to America. Fear not; you shall be protected. You are the one I have chosen to spread the message of Kriya Yoga in the West
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood. One source of information is the book Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshal Govindan.[9]According to Govindan, Babaji was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his parents. [8] V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah founded on 17 October 1952, (they claim – at the request of Babaji) a new organization, "Kriya Babaji Sangah," dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953 Mahavatar Babaji told them that he was born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal village now known as Parangipettai, Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, India.[10] Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organizations claim his place and date of birth.[10] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is Nagarajan.[9][10]
In Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi, many references are made to Mahavatar Babaji, including from Lahirī and Sri Yukteshwar.[3] In his book The Second Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ went to India and conferred with Mahavatar Babaji.[8] This would make Babaji at least 2000 years old.[11] According to Govindan's book, Babaji Nagaraj's father was the priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which he believed to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one rare jackfruit for a family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that time. He found the jackfruit when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his mother came to know about it, she flew in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived. Later on he thanked God for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or illusion. His Love for his mother became unconditional and detached."[9]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a slave in Calcutta (now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he freed Nagaraj shortly thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of wandering sannyāsin due to their radiant faces and love for God. During the next few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy scriptures like the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita.
According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult journey on foot and by boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj met Siddha Bhogarnathar and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive yogic sadhana for a long time with him. Bhogarnathar inspired Nagaraj to seek his initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha Agastya. Babaji became a disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of Kriya Kundalini Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and spent eighteen months practising yogic kriyataught to him by Siddha Agastya and Bhogarnathar. Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[9]
It is claimed that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A. Ramaiah, a young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T. Neelakantan, a famous journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of the Theosophical Society and mentor of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have appeared to each of them independently and then brought them together to work for his Mission in 1942
By Kailash Mansarovar Foundation Swami Bikash Giri www.sumeruparvat.com , www.naturalitem.com
found this suite of photographs at The Brass Armadillo Antique Mall, which sits beside I-70 east of the sports complex. it's always been a happy hunting ground for me. it was there that i saw the two best photographs i ever saw and didn't buy.
these photographs aren't great, but they are instructive of a particular way of life at a particular moment in our history. there is much to admire in good old American know-how and ambition. my only quibble is that i don't believe that is all there is.
The chancel arch.
Unbuttressed, late w tower with pyramid roof. But the nave is Norman and has in its s doorway and chancel arch two of the very best and most characteristic pieces of the Herefordshire school of carvers. Both pieces are clearly the work of one man. His obsession was birds, especially cocks. Cocks are e.g. on the capitals of the one order of shafts of the S doorway. The abacus has intertwined trails. In the arch a thick roll moulding and a band of rosettes. But the tympanum is what really matters, a tympanum that helps much to reconstruct the all but lost one of Shobdon, of which Rowlstone is to all intents and purposes a copy. It represents Christ in Glory. The legs are placed in the typically Romanesque way, with knees wide apart and feet together. The folds have the tense, stringy parallel curves of the Herefordshire school. The figure is in a halo, not almond-shaped as usual, but with top and bottom rounded. Four angels hold the halo, and all four are represented flying head downwards. This allows the carver again to display his curved parallels. The composition is highly accomplished. What is against nature is in accordance with stylistic principles. In the capitals of the chancel arch there are again birds. The capitals it are of one piece with the outer adjoining panel of two small figures on each side. On the 1. (N) they are an angel and a bishop, on the r. it is not so easy to recognize them, as they stand upside down. That does not seem quite so accomplished, and the most baffling fact is that the whole stone was not rejected. Such indulgence is attractive; it is instructive too. Many birds once more in the abaci. In the doorway arch a thick roll and an outer band of saltire crosses. Norman windows in nave and chancel.
(Pevsner: The Buildings of England, Herefordshire)
MAHAVATAR BABAJI CAVE
Mahāvatār Bābājī (literally; Great Avatar Dear Father) is the name given to an Indian saint and yogi by Lahiri Mahasaya and several of his disciples,[2] who reported meeting him between 1861 and 1935. Some of these meetings were described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first-hand report of Yogananda's own meeting with the yogi.[3]Another first hand account was given by Yukteswar Giri in his book The Holy Science.[4] According to Sri M's autobiography (Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master) Babaji, was Shiva. In the second last chapter of his book, he mentions Babaji changing his form to that of Shiva. All of these accounts, along with additional reported meetings, are described in various biographies.[5][6][7]According to Yogananda's autobiography, Babaji has resided for at least hundreds of years in the remote Himalayan regions of India, seen in person by only a small number of disciples and others.[3][8] The death less Master is more than 2000 years old. He belongs to a very powerful lineage of Siddha Boganthar and Rishi Agastya as his Gurus. He acquired this deathless, non perishable body through tough yogik kriyas.
Again, according to his autobiography, shortly before Yogananda left for America in 1920, Babaji came to his home in Calcutta, where the young monk sat deeply praying for divine assurance regarding the mission he was about to undertake. Babaji said to him: "Follow the behest of your guru and go to America. Fear not; you shall be protected. You are the one I have chosen to spread the message of Kriya Yoga in the West
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood. One source of information is the book Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshal Govindan.[9]According to Govindan, Babaji was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his parents. [8] V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah founded on 17 October 1952, (they claim – at the request of Babaji) a new organization, "Kriya Babaji Sangah," dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953 Mahavatar Babaji told them that he was born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal village now known as Parangipettai, Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, India.[10] Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organizations claim his place and date of birth.[10] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is Nagarajan.[9][10]
In Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi, many references are made to Mahavatar Babaji, including from Lahirī and Sri Yukteshwar.[3] In his book The Second Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ went to India and conferred with Mahavatar Babaji.[8] This would make Babaji at least 2000 years old.[11] According to Govindan's book, Babaji Nagaraj's father was the priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which he believed to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one rare jackfruit for a family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that time. He found the jackfruit when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his mother came to know about it, she flew in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived. Later on he thanked God for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or illusion. His Love for his mother became unconditional and detached."[9]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a slave in Calcutta (now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he freed Nagaraj shortly thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of wandering sannyāsin due to their radiant faces and love for God. During the next few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy scriptures like the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita.
According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult journey on foot and by boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj met Siddha Bhogarnathar and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive yogic sadhana for a long time with him. Bhogarnathar inspired Nagaraj to seek his initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha Agastya. Babaji became a disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of Kriya Kundalini Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and spent eighteen months practising yogic kriyataught to him by Siddha Agastya and Bhogarnathar. Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[9]
It is claimed that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A. Ramaiah, a young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T. Neelakantan, a famous journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of the Theosophical Society and mentor of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have appeared to each of them independently and then brought them together to work for his Mission in 1942
By Kailash Mansarovar Foundation Swami Bikash Giri www.sumeruparvat.com , www.naturalitem.com
I walked most of the way back to the city NE up the Amir Kabir st. from Fin and stopped to tour this just NW of the street. This site of adobe and mud-brick ruins consists of two tell sites @ 600 m.s apart, 'Sialk South' on which stands this structure, which in 2000 was claimed to be not only a ziggurat, but the oldest known to archaeology anywhere (Wikipedia still claims that it is but it's not, see below), and the much older 'Sialk North'. Tappe Sialk is said to be so ancient that it's something of a cradle of Iranian civilization, older than or at least contemporary with Susa although much smaller in area, which was nurtured and supported by "the pristine large water source [from the Karkas mtn.s], the Cheshmeh ye Soleiman (Solomon's Spring)". I took my time to walk all around it and take in all the details, as is my wont, in the deeply eroded adobe (although you can see some brick in this photo) and amongst the ubiquitous pottery sherds, etc. I was here at a good time of day, late in the afternoon with 'golden hour' light as you can see. As at Hasanlu (and Susa too), a friendly group of boys appeared soon after I arrived who wanted candy and attention. One had some pottery sherds for sale, I bought two, and at one point as we walked around they pointed out a needle or 2 left behind by a junkie in an adobe alcove. Later they threw rocks at me from behind and from a distance, as some had done at Hasanlu a month or so earlier (and once at Susa too), while I continued my tour. They threw them one at a time and never hit me, as they were just looking for attention, but it was less surprising and distracting than at Hasanlu. It was fascinating and cerebral to tour the site of one of the oldest cities I've toured to date (if not the oldest. Was the much older Jericho a city? Was Sialk really a city?)
- Again, in 2000 the structure in this photo was claimed to be the oldest ziggurat known to archaeology anywhere, a reputation based on the findings of French archaeologist Roman Ghirshman and co. who excavated the site /b/ 1933 and '36. (The competition includes the massive, Sumerian 'Anu' ziggurat [on which the 'White Temple' was built] at Uruk in the 'Late Uruk Period' aka 'Uruk III', @ 3,200-3,000 BC [learner.org]. smarthistory.org/white-temple-and-ziggurat-uruk/ ) Artifacts from that first dig wound up primarily at the Louvre, with some at the British Museum, the Met in NYC, the Bastam in Tehran and in the hands of private collectors, and include some finely painted pottery similar to that found at Susa.
- But in 2001, a year after this was taken, archaeologist S. Malek Shahmirzadi initiated a 5 yr. interdisciplinary research project which involved excavation and carbon-dating, the ‘Sialk Reconsideration Project’, "intended to [determine and] redefine cultural sequences at Sialk from the Neolithic to the end of the Iron Age. The data [obtained] from 'Sialk South' consist of 12 radiocarbon dates, incl. 10 from the stratified sequence of Trench E1. ... A Bayesian model was constructed using the stratigraphic sequence in Trench E1. ... Chronologically, the South mound covers the main periods of the Early Chalcolithic, Middle Chalcolithic, Late Chalcolithic, proto-Elamite and the Iron Age." www.academia.edu/19743014/_2013_publ_2015_A_new_radiocarb...
- (I'll revise the following some time if I find another article re the results and get a better clue.) The article I quote from in the link above is the only source I've found online (to date) re the test results, but it confuses me. Radio-carbon results in a chart at p. 30 include 10 from Tappe Sialk, with 5 from Sialk III (2 from the 'Early Chalcolithic' [EC], 3 from the 'Mid-Chalcolithic' [MC]) that (ostensibly) date /b/ @ 3,230 and 3,010 BC and at least 3 ('Early Bronze Age 1' [EB1]) from charcoal samples at Sialk IV (which I've read, in less reliable sources such as livius.org [see below], and which is unconfirmed in this article, is the site or 'horizon' of the ziggurat) that date /b/ @ 2600 and 2520 BC (although I don't know where those samples were found on site). At p. 36, the authors write that "[t]he modeled dates show continuity /b/ EC, MC, LC and the start of the EB1 ...", BUT that "[t]he modeled values of the boundaries are: ...
2. transition from EC and MC (T1) /b/ 4002 - 3853 cal BC (3976 - 3911 cal BC at 68% ...);
3. transition /b/ MC and LC (EMC) /b/ 3916 - 3582 cal BC (3858 - 3711 cal BC at 68% ...);
4. transition /b/ LC and EBI /b/ 3682 - 3324 cal BC (3632 - 3385 cal BC at 68% ...); ..."
Dates for the transition /b/ the Mid and Late-Chalcolithic on p. 36 (3,916 and 3,582 BC) predate those for charcoal dated to the MC in the chart on p. 30 (/b/ @ 3,165 and 3,010 BC), by up to 750 years. ?? I must've misconstrued the results in that chart somehow. (The MC and EC dates look to be much too close in that chart too.) If you get it better than I do too, please weigh in with a comment.
- This project had a dramatic moment or two. A footnote (no. 172) to an article written in 2005 by Azarnoush and Helwing reads: "Shahmirzadi’s proposal to reconstruct this building as a ziqqurat with two ramparts, and to date it to the early 3rd mill. BC, is not only not shared by some of his team members, but has also led to a very polemic and personal debate that will not be repeated here. Investigations of the construction continue."
- According to Livius.org (a page "created in 2010; last modified [in] 2020"), the Sialk IV period, to which this structure belongs, "was more or less contemporary with the 'Early Dynastic Period' in southern Iraq, @ 3,000 - 2,500 BCE. ... Cylinder seals are proof of flourishing interregional trade, there's evidence [of literacy] in a proto-Elamite cuneiform script [5 tablets in that script, which competes for the title of the world's earliest, were found here in the first dig in the 30s], and the inhabitants were capable of producing bronze. The prosperity of this age can also be deduced from the construction of a ziggurat, ... the oldest monument of this type in Iran. [This claim has been challenged too as the remains of a ziggurat at Susa could predate it.] It had three platforms [which should qualify it as a ziggurat] and was ascended from the south." www.livius.org/articles/place/tepe-sialk/
- Sialk appears to have been one of the world's cradles of early metallurgy, and evidence has been published that it's the site of "the earliest silver production" yet found anywhere (together with Arisman and Tappeh Hissar, two contemporary sites in Iran). !! "The south Tell includes the Sialk III and IV levels. The 1st, divided into 7 sub-periods, corresponds to the 5th mill. BC and the beginning of the 4th (c. 4000 BC). This period is in continuity with the previous one, and sees significant complexity in architecture (molded bricks, use of stone) and crafts, metallurgy in particular. ... Tepe Sialk was an important centre for metallurgy in central Iran during Sialk III and IV." Finds include much slag, litharge cakes, crucibles and moulds. "Charcoal found in one of the furnaces together with litharge fragments were radiocarbon dated to 3660-3520 BC., the oldest known fragments of such processes in the ancient world." (Wikipedia and N. Nezafati and E. Pernicka of the Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum and the University of Heidelberg). So Iran, specifically this region, appears to be the cradle of silver production.
- "Besides pottery production on a larger scale, systematic experiments with new materials, copper and silver in particular, seem to have taken place during the Chalcolithic. Copper smelting and the casting of artifacts is documented in individual bldg.s of the settlements in the first half of the 4th mill. B.C., but also at small independent sites. Individual smelting sites scattered at the edge of the desert [the Dasht-e Kavir] were recorded during the Arisma¯n survey that don't seem to be associated with any permanent settlement. The extraction of silver from lead is regularly practised in the larger sites and is attested at Arisma¯n and at Tappe Sialk. This developing metal industry must be understood within the framework of a growing supra-regional network: artifacts produced in the highland sites were distributed to Susa and to other lowland sites. ... Arisma ¯n now provides an instructive example of an industrial scale metalsmiths’ settlement." (Azarnoush and Helwing, 2005)
- www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9nVfiYnCow
- So no, the proto-Elamites didn't invent the ziggurat, BUT they invented or were the first to smelt and produce silver. That said, Iran has so much in its architectural heritage which truly is original and primary, although largely unrecognized in the west. Some examples:
1. The first high dome on a square base with pioneering use of the squinch at the 3rd cent. palace of Ardeshir Babakan in Fars.: flickr.com/photos/97924400@N00/2993566556/in/dateposted-p...
2. The double dome and the 2nd highest dome anywhere (after the Hagia Sofia) until Brunelleschi's achievement in Florence: flickr.com/photos/97924400@N00/3509364810/in/dateposted-p...
3. The rib or ribbed vault, which became such an important and basic element of medieval Gothic architecture, invented or at least developed in ancient Iran (by the Medes?), where it "appears to have been confined, primarily." It was "employed extensively" at Nush-i-Jan (750-600 BC) in the construction of huge vault bricks, 1.2 m.s long. "One would expect such long bricks to be fragile, but they were strong enough to support the floor of an upper room in the central temple." (Van Beek) case.edu/lifelonglearning/sites/default/files/2020-02/Van... flickr.com/photos/97924400@N00/3623624478/in/photostream/ Van Beek writes that "a rib vault couldn't have been as strong as a pitched-brick or radial vault, and apart from a certain simplicity of construction it probably had few advantages." ? But it was essential to gothic architecture for good reason. "The ribs transmit the load downward and outward to specific points, usually rows of columns or piers, greatly reduc[ing] the weight and thus the outward thrust of the vault", permitting medieval Western European architects to build "higher and thinner walls with much larger windows." (Wikipedia) I hadn't read nor heard about the pioneering use of rib vaulting at Nush-i Jan until I found the article from Scientific American in the link above, and now, in light of the great length of Iran's 'Tentative list' of sites and sights proposed for designation as 'World Heritage' by Unesco, I'm all the more surprised that it's not on it. It's a gimme, arguably the finest surviving Median bldg. (!), at least one of the oldest surviving Zoroastrian fire-temples (but which seems to predate Zoroaster himself), and the best early example of the extensive employment of rib vaulting in the region where it seems to have been developed and where it might have been invented (as opposed to the arch itself or the pointed arch), a very big deal.
4. The Taq-i Kisra, the world's largest ancient arch, dating from sometime /b/ the 3rd and 6th cent.s and a world wonder, remains standing at ancient Ctesiphon, capital of the Persian Sassanian empire in modern Iraq. At 28.4 m.s in height x 25.5 m.s, it's the largest, unreinforced brick vault in the world, a landmark in the history of architecture.
5. The Sassanian 'Great Wall of Gorgan' aka 'Sadd-i-Iskandar', 'Alexander's Wall', is the 2nd longest defensive wall built in antiquity or before the 20th cent. (the 3rd behind the modern wall dividing North and South Korea) at 195 km.s in length and 5-10 m.s in width, built of mud- and fired-brick, gypsum, and mortar, with > 30 fortresses along its length. It stretches from the town of Pishkamar at the foothills of the Pishkamar mtn.s of NE Iran west to the shores of the Caspian, and is one of several 'Caspian gates' in the region of Hyrcania, believed to have provided protection from the marauding 'White Huns'. It's longer than 'Hadrian's wall' in England and the 'Antonine wall' in Scotland combined. The 'Great Wall of China' is, of course, much longer. (Honourable mention should be made of a close 3rd in the running, an engineering feat even less well known than the Gorgan Wall, 'Sungbo's Eredo' near Lagos in Nigeria, longer than the Ming dynasty portion of the Great Wall at > 160 km.s in length, a continuous system of defensive walls and ditches or moats with internal banks dug to encircle and protect the area of the ancient Ijebu-ode Kingdom [a Yoruba kingdom], the largest single monument in Africa. The difference in height /b/ the depth of the ditch and the upper rim of the bank on the inner side can reach 20 m.s. "A 6,500-km. long series of connected but separate earthworks [surround Ifẹ̀, Ilesa, and the Benin Iya] in the neighboring Edo-speaking region." [Wikipedia])
6. Again, ancient pioneering Iranian metallurgists in this region and further north towards the Caspian seem to have been the first in the world to produce silver.
- I read years ago in a text (that I've misplaced) that the earliest examples or example of proto-Elamite writing or hieroglyphics predate the earliest Sumerian cuneiform, and so proto-Elamite would be the world's earliest form of writing, but internet search results are contradictory on this point. "Proper Proto-Elamite was used ... for a brief period /b/ 3300 and 3000 BCE (circa the Jemdet Nasr period of Mesopotamia)" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proto-Elamite while writing was "first developed around 3200 B.C. by Sumerian scribes in the ancient [Sumerian] city-state of Uruk." www.archaeology.org/issues/213-1605/features/4326-cuneifo... It seems that the development of the earliest proto-Elamite and Sumerian scripts was neck and neck. According to J. Wright at the University of Texas, "the transition from counters to script took place simultaneously in Sumer and Elam ... when, @ 3500 BC, Elam was under Sumerian domination." sites.utexas.edu/dsb/tokens/the-evolution-of-writing/ Even if Sumerian pre-dates proto-Elamite, the development of the world's 2nd oldest writing system is a big feather in any cap.
- So Iran has enough superlatives. Let Iraq have its oldest and earliest ziggurats.
From Kashan I headed (by bus I think?) to the popular museum town of Abiyaneh or Abyaneh. (It's become so popular since that tourists are charged a fee today to enter the town.) It wasn't mentioned in my LP guide, so someone I spoke with in Kashan must have extolled its virtues. See my next photo taken in that town.
- My bus would've headed SE @ 5 clicks down the 71 to the 665 and then SE down that road @ 35-40 clicks to cross the 7 and then 10-15 to the turnoff on the mtn. road to Abyaneh, @ 20 km.s west, OR the bus would've headed < 10 km.s down the 587 and turned left and east onto the 7, @ 35 km.s SE to the 665, and turned right and south, etc.
Misses en route from Kashan to Abyaneh:
- The first rte. passes @ 2 km.s south of the adobe ruins of the sprawling Asad Abad castle with its abundance of arches, @ 1 km. SE of the turn-off to the 665 from the 71.
- The 665 passes alongside and to the south of the 'Navab Anticline' @ 25 km.s SE of Kashan, a large oval plateau surrounded by a steep ridge. It's dramatic and fascinating from space on google maps, but I don't see any photos of it online. (?)
- The Abrouz Shah Abbasi caravanserai, Safavid, restored and in use, in the town of Abuzeydabad, @ 12 km.s NE of the 71, from a pt. @ 30 km.s SE of Kashan.
(I write much more re sites and sights further SE along and handy to the 71 in my en route list from Natanz to Ardestan in this photo comment.: www.flickr.com/photos/97924400@N00/2993316628 )
- I don't recall it and didn't recognize it for what it is (I'd remember it if I had), but my bus passed alongside the famous 'Natanz Nuclear Facility' down the 665 and just south of where it crosses the 7 (and 33 clicks N-NW of the town of Natanz, where I later toured a famous mosque en route). I just found it on google maps. All these years (after its existence was revealed in the news in @ 2002 [I thought "What? I've been there."]) I assumed it was in or @ Natanz. It's "generally recognized as Iran's central facility for uranium enrichment with > 19,000 gas centrifuges currently operational, nearly half fed with Uranium hexafluoride. ... On Oct. 28, 2020, the IAEA released satellite images [indicating] that Iran had begun construction of an underground plant near the nuclear facility at Natanz. In March 2021, Iran commenced enrichment at Natanz with a 3rd set of advanced nuclear centrifuges in a series of violations of the defunct 2015 nuclear accord." As to security incidents, Natanz "was hit by a cyber attack [with the 'Stuxnet' virus] alleged to have been carried out in an operation dubbed 'Olympic Games' by a coalition of German, French, British, American, Dutch and Israeli intelligence organizations. ... At @ 2 a.m. on July 2, 2020, a fire and explosion hit a centrifuge production plant at an enrichment facility at Natanz. A group known as the "Cheetahs of the Homeland" claimed responsibility. Some Iranian officials suggested the incident was caused by cyber sabotage. ..." (all Wikipedia)
- Re Stuxnet: youtu.be/dobTyPKccMA?si=NNPl1jGLmyASnmBG
- The incredible Hanjan castle, a semi-intact citadel with yellow, mud-brick walls on a field-stone base high above and across from the road to Abyaneh, @ 2 km.s west of the turn-off from the 665. I wonder, could this have been the structure that I saw through a bus window, and thought "Wow, I should get off", but didn't. He who hesitates is lost. I remember it was to my left as we drove past it (this is south of the road, and the bus drives West to Abyaneh), but across a stream (or was it above a green patch with trees as at Hanjan?). No other structure I've seen on google maps along any of the roads I travelled is a better candidate. (I was hoping I'd find it.) I write about driving by it or something similar in my write-up for this photo.: www.flickr.com/photos/97924400@N00/2992846350/in/datepost... (I didn't see it on my return trip en route to Natanz.) It dates to the Seljuq era and has seen some recent maintenance and renovation as it was designated National heritage in the '80s. Every family in the village of Hanjan owned at least one of > 100 rooms in the citadel (similar in use to the Saxon 'meal rooms' in the fortified churches of southern Transylvania) which has 4 stories and is 2,600 m.s2, per comments on google maps. youtu.be/W0igiIsLlrM?si=0jrm5cdh1KXr14Jz
- The village of Barz, through which my bus passed, is similar to neighboring Abyaneh with much picturesque, old adobe architecture, including a visibly ancient Imamzadeh with another tiled tent dome, alleged to be that of Ismail & Ishaq, sons of Imam Mousa ibn Ja'far (aka Al-Qazim ["the one who controls his anger"], the famous 7th Imam?) See my write-up for my photo taken on a terrace in the 12th cent. Zeyaratgah shrine in Abyaneh, said to house the remains of Yaḥyā and ʿĪsā, either the same two men or their brothers, also alleged to be sons of the 7th Imam. I haven't found any information online re this shrine in Barz.
- Many wild antelopes are seen in the foothills north of Barz in a video on google maps.
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Masonic Square and Compasses.
The Square and Compasses (or, more correctly, a square and a set of compasses joined together) is the single most identifiable symbol of Freemasonry. Both the square and compasses are architect's tools and are used in Masonic ritual as emblems to teach symbolic lessons. Some Lodges and rituals explain these symbols as lessons in conduct: for example, Duncan's Masonic Monitor of 1866 explains them as: "The square, to square our actions; The compasses, to circumscribe and keep us within bounds with all mankind".
However, as Freemasonry is non-dogmatic, there is no general interpretation for these symbols (or any Masonic symbol) that is used by Freemasonry as a whole.
Square and Compasses:
Source: Mackey's Encyclopedia of Freemasonry
These two symbols have been so long and so universally combined — to teach us, as says an early instruction, "to square our actions and to keep them within due bounds," they are so seldom seen apart, but are so kept together, either as two Great Lights, or as a jewel worn once by the Master of the Lodge, now by the Past Master—that they have come at last to be recognized as the proper badge of a Master Mason, just as the Triple Tau is of a Royal Arch Mason or the Passion Cross of a Knight Templar.
So universally has this symbol been recognized, even by the profane world, as the peculiar characteristic of Freemasonry, that it has recently been made in the United States the subject of a legal decision. A manufacturer of flour having made, in 1873, an application to the Patent Office for permission to adopt the Square and Compasses as a trade-mark, the Commissioner of Patents, .J. M. Thatcher, refused the permission as the mark was a Masonic symbol.
If this emblem were something other than precisely what it is—either less known", less significant, or fully and universally understood—all this might readily be admitted. But, Considering its peculiar character and relation to the public, an anomalous question is presented. There can be no doubt that this device, so commonly worn and employed by Masons, has an established mystic significance, universally recognized as existing; whether comprehended by all or not, is not material to this issue. In view of the magnitude and extent of the Masonic organization, it is impossible to divest its symbols, or at least this particular symbol—perhaps the best known of all—of its ordinary signification, wherever displaced, either as an arbitrary character or otherwise.
It will be universally understood, or misunderstood, as having a Masonic significance; and, therefore, as a trade-mark, must constantly work deception. Nothing could be more mischievous than to create as a monopoly, and uphold by the poser of lacy anything so calculated. as applied to purposes of trade. to be misinterpreted, to mislead all classes, and to constantly foster suggestions of mystery in affairs of business (see Infringing upon Freemasonry, also Imitative Societies, and Clandestine).
In a religious work by John Davies, entitled Summa Totalis, or All in All and the Same Forever, printed in 1607, we find an allusion to the Square and Compasses by a profane in a really Masonic sense. The author, who proposes to describe mystically the form of the Deity, says in his dedication:
Yet I this forme of formelesse Deity,
Drewe by the Squire and Compasse of our Creed.
In Masonic symbolism the Square and Compasses refer to the Freemason's duty to the Craft and to himself; hence it is properly a symbol of brotherhood, and there significantly adopted as the badge or token of the Fraternity.
Berage, in his work on the higher Degrees, Les plus secrets Mystéres des Hauts Grades, or The Most Secret Mysteries of the High Grades, gives a new interpretation to the symbol. He says: "The Square and the Compasses represent the union of the Old and New Testaments. None of the high Degrees recognize this interpretation, although their symbolism of the two implements differs somewhat from that of Symbolic Freemasonry.
The Square is with them peculiarly appropriated to the lower Degrees, as founded on the Operative Art; while the Compasses, as an implement of higher character and uses, is attributed to the Decrees, which claim to have a more elevated and philosophical foundation. Thus they speak of the initiate, when he passes from the Blue Lodge to the Lodge of Perfection, as 'passing from the Square to the Compasses,' to indicate a progressive elevation in his studies. Yet even in the high Degrees, the square and compasses combined retain their primitive signification as a symbol of brotherhood and as a badge of the Order."
Square and Compass:
Source: The Builder October 1916
By Bro. B. C. Ward, Iowa
Worshipful Master and Brethren: Let us behold the glorious beauty that lies hidden beneath the symbolism of the Square and Compass; and first as to the Square. Geometry, the first and noblest of the sciences, is the basis on which the superstructure of Masonry has been erected. As you know, the word "Geometry" is derived from two Greek words which mean "to measure the earth," so that Geometry originated in measurement; and in those early days, when land first began to be measured, the Square, being a right angle, was the instrument used, so that in time the Square began to symbolize the Earth. And later it began to symbolize, Masonically, the earthly-in man, that is man's lower nature, and still later it began to symbolize man's duty in his earthly relations, or his moral obligations to his Fellowmen. The symbolism of the Square is as ancient as the Pyramids. The Egyptians used it in building the Pyramids. The base of every pyramid is a perfect square, and to the Egyptians the Square was their highest and most sacred emblem. Even the Chinese many, many centuries ago used the Square to represent Good, and Confucius in his writings speaks of the Square to represent a Just man.
As Masons we have adopted the 47th Problem of Euclid as the rule by which to determine or prove a perfect Square. Many of us remember with what interest we solved that problem in our school days. The Square has become our most significant Emblem. It rests upon the open Bible on this altar; it is one of the three great Lights; and it is the chief ornament of the Worshipful Master. There is a good reason why this distinction has been conferred upon the Square. There can be nothing truer than a perfect Square--a right angle. Hence the Square has become an emblem of Perfection.
Now a few words as to the Compass: Astronomy was the second great science promulgated among men. In the process of Man's evolution there came a time when he began to look up to the stars and wonder at the vaulted Heavens above him. When he began to study the stars, he found that the Square was not adapted to the measurement of the Heavens. He must have circular measure; he needed to draw a circle from a central point, and so the Compass was employed. By the use of the Compass man began to study the starry Heavens, and as the Square primarily symbolized the Earth, the Compass began to symbolize the Heavens, the celestial canopy, the study of which has led men to think of God, and adore Him as the Supreme Architect of the Universe. In later times the Compass began to symbolize the spiritual or higher nature of man, and it is a significant fact that the circumference of a circle, which is a line without end, has become an emblem of Eternity and symbolizes Divinity; so the Compass, and the circle drawn by the Compass, both point men Heavenward and Godward.
The Masonic teaching concerning the two points of the Compass is very interesting and instructive. The novitiate in Masonry, as he kneels at this altar, and asks for Light sees the Square, which symbolizes his lower nature, he may well note the position of the Compass. As he takes another step, and asks for more Light, the position of the Compass is changed somewhat, symbolizing that his spiritual nature can, in some measure, overcome his evil tendencies. As he takes another step in Masonry, and asks for further Light, and hears the significant words, "and God said let there be Light, and there was Light," he sees the Compass in new light; and for the first time he sees the meaning, thus unmistakably alluding to the sacred and eternal truth that as the Heavens are higher than the Earth, so the spiritual is higher than the material, and the spiritual in man must have its proper place, and should be above his lower nature, and dominate all his thoughts and actions. That eminent Philosopher, Edmund Burke, once said, "It is ordained that men of intemperate passions cannot be free. Their passions forge the chains which bind them, and make them slaves." Burke was right. Masonry, through the beautiful symbolism of the Compass, tells us how we can be free men, by permitting the spiritual within us to overcome our evil tendencies, and dominate all our thoughts and actions. Brethren, sometimes in the silent quiet hour, as we think of this conflict between our lower and higher natures, we sometimes say in the words of another, "Show me the way and let me bravely climb to where all conflicts with the flesh shall cease. Show me that way. Show me the way up to a higher plane where my body shall be servant of my Soul. Show me that way."
Brethren, if that prayer expresses desire of our hearts, let us take heed to the beautiful teachings of the Compass, which silently and persistently tells each one of us,
"You should not in the valley stay
While the great horizons stretch away
The very cliffs that wall you round
Are ladders up to higher ground.
And Heaven draws near as you ascend,
The Breeze invites, the Stars befriend.
All things are beckoning to the Best,
Then climb toward God and find sweet Rest."
I'm considering using a company far away to do some printing for me, and among the preparatory steps will be sending them this file to print. I have their ICC profile and can proof things on-screen, and I also believe my screen is fairly well calibrated, but getting this printed up 8x10 will help confirm that we'll be "on the same page" when I send them real files.
I'm posting this because it may also be useful or at least instructive to see how this looks on the screens of others as I get the chance to compare. If I have that 8x10 handy I can see just how much variance there is between my screen and that of my friends.
I have a Pantone formula guide (i.e. swatch book) used by commercial printers - that's the source of the "true" colors I can use to check both my screen and what comes back from the print shop.
MAHAVATAR BABAJI CAVE
Mahāvatār Bābājī (literally; Great Avatar Dear Father) is the name given to an Indian saint and yogi by Lahiri Mahasaya and several of his disciples,[2] who reported meeting him between 1861 and 1935. Some of these meetings were described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first-hand report of Yogananda's own meeting with the yogi.[3]Another first hand account was given by Yukteswar Giri in his book The Holy Science.[4] According to Sri M's autobiography (Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master) Babaji, was Shiva. In the second last chapter of his book, he mentions Babaji changing his form to that of Shiva. All of these accounts, along with additional reported meetings, are described in various biographies.[5][6][7]According to Yogananda's autobiography, Babaji has resided for at least hundreds of years in the remote Himalayan regions of India, seen in person by only a small number of disciples and others.[3][8] The death less Master is more than 2000 years old. He belongs to a very powerful lineage of Siddha Boganthar and Rishi Agastya as his Gurus. He acquired this deathless, non perishable body through tough yogik kriyas.
Again, according to his autobiography, shortly before Yogananda left for America in 1920, Babaji came to his home in Calcutta, where the young monk sat deeply praying for divine assurance regarding the mission he was about to undertake. Babaji said to him: "Follow the behest of your guru and go to America. Fear not; you shall be protected. You are the one I have chosen to spread the message of Kriya Yoga in the West
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood. One source of information is the book Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshal Govindan.[9]According to Govindan, Babaji was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his parents. [8] V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah founded on 17 October 1952, (they claim – at the request of Babaji) a new organization, "Kriya Babaji Sangah," dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953 Mahavatar Babaji told them that he was born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal village now known as Parangipettai, Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, India.[10] Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organizations claim his place and date of birth.[10] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is Nagarajan.[9][10]
In Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi, many references are made to Mahavatar Babaji, including from Lahirī and Sri Yukteshwar.[3] In his book The Second Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ went to India and conferred with Mahavatar Babaji.[8] This would make Babaji at least 2000 years old.[11] According to Govindan's book, Babaji Nagaraj's father was the priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which he believed to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one rare jackfruit for a family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that time. He found the jackfruit when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his mother came to know about it, she flew in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived. Later on he thanked God for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or illusion. His Love for his mother became unconditional and detached."[9]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a slave in Calcutta (now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he freed Nagaraj shortly thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of wandering sannyāsin due to their radiant faces and love for God. During the next few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy scriptures like the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita.
According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult journey on foot and by boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj met Siddha Bhogarnathar and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive yogic sadhana for a long time with him. Bhogarnathar inspired Nagaraj to seek his initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha Agastya. Babaji became a disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of Kriya Kundalini Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and spent eighteen months practising yogic kriyataught to him by Siddha Agastya and Bhogarnathar. Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[9]
It is claimed that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A. Ramaiah, a young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T. Neelakantan, a famous journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of the Theosophical Society and mentor of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have appeared to each of them independently and then brought them together to work for his Mission in 1942
By Kailash Mansarovar Foundation Swami Bikash Giri www.sumeruparvat.com , www.naturalitem.com
Inspired by 'Toshio ''s spectacular photo Waikiki Blue Hour, I trawled my archives, and discovered I had attempted to take a similar photo from much the same spot when I was at Waikiki in January. Mine's obviously not as good, but I now think it's better than the earlier photo I did post, and I hope it will be of interest. I find it instructive to compare my photo with Toshio's: his is apparently taken later, is wider angle, is better (certainly more dramatically) processed, and has straight buildings. What else?
Replaced again after straightening and reprocessing.
Please view large on black.
Retford - St Swithun's Church
Detail: Musical Angel.
The church was founded in 1258, but the current building is almost completely the work of restorers of 1658, 1854-5 and 1905.
St Swithun’s is a cruciform stone building consisting of chancel, with vestry, nave aisles, transepts, north chantry chapel, south porch and a 90' central embattled tower with 8 pinnacles, containing a clock and 10 bells. The oldest, virtually untouched, part is the north transept, although it has now been transformed into a chapel as a war memorial.
The tower and chancel collapsed in 1651 and were rebuilt in 1658. The tower is supported by four massive arches and the nave and aisles are separated by arcades of five bays.
There is a stone pulpit, an eagle lectern in oak, and a large organ erected in 1841. The south porch built in 1852.
In 1884-5 G G Place re-built the north aisle (with capitals imitating the 13th century ones), then north porch, north chancel aisle, clerestory, battlements and the east window of 13th century stonework. (All of these were renovated in 1905.) Galleries were removed and new seats and roof installed.
G F Bodley re-built the chantry chapel in 1873 and refurbished the chancel.
New choir stalls were erected in 1889 and in 1910 and 1914 the corporation presented new stalls for its own use.
In the north transept is an incised slab to Henry Smyth (d1496) and Sir Whatton Amcotts (d1807) by William Kinnard, architect.
The Victorian stained glass is instructive with work by Clayton & Bell, Kempe & Co, O’Connor, Hardman, Wailes and one by a local, George Shaw.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
Guide
Although there are records of a church on this site in the 13th century, the church today is a typical large town church, built on a cruciform plan with a central tower. The oldest part as it now stands is the North Transept which today is called the Lady Chapel and used for weekday or other small services. The central pillar and its two arches belong to the 14th century and still display their original painted decoration. Anciently there were two chantry chapels here known as Our Lady's Chantry and St Trinity Chantry. Their altars were against the East wall which may have been further to the East than it is now. The purpose of a chantry was to provide regular Masses for the souls of departed benefactors. A document of 1535 says that St Swithun's had four chantries and there may have been two more in the South Transept or elsewhere in the church. The neighbouring Chapelgate probably takes its name from the existence of the chantry chapels. The North Transept chapel is also a war memorial and it houses the banner of the Borough of East Retford.
The rest of the church is basically of the 15th century and is in the style often called perpendicular. The central tower collapsed in a storm in 1651, destroying much of the Chancel and South transept. It was rebuilt in 1658 and from outside it clearly has a 17th century look to it. Inside, massive piers were built to carry its weight and these low, heavy crossing arches are a feature of the church today. Looking eastward from the nave, the columns of the earlier arches can be seen, much more slender and with a much higher springing. Under the tower, on the South side high above the vicar's stall, although not easily seen with the naked eye, is a stone bearing the inscription Ano Mundi 5226 Ano Christie 1582. It was moved to there from the chantry in 1873.
There are many memorials in the church. The oldest one is a floor slab in the North-East corner of the North Transept chapel. It dates from 1496 and is in memory of Henry Smyth, but most of the memorials are of the 18th and 19th centuries.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
www.visitoruk.com/Retford/st-swithuns-church-C567-AT5017....
found this suite of photographs at The Brass Armadillo Antique Mall, which sits beside I-70 east of the sports complex. it's always been a happy hunting ground for me. it was there that i saw the two best photographs i ever saw and didn't buy.
these photographs aren't great, but they are instructive of a particular way of life at a particular moment in our history. there is much to admire in good old American know-how and ambition. my only quibble is that i don't believe that is all there is.
The mosaic in the triangular pediment at the top of the building commemorates the Museum's origins: Queen Victoria stands before the Crystal Palace at the Great Exhibition of 1851 and hands out laurels. On the left, Science and Invention are represented by a steam locomotive and a printing press, while on the right, the Arts are symbolized by a bust, a palette, brushes and canvas, a classical column and a violin. These mosaics, devised by Godfrey Sykes, the Museum's Chief Decorative Designer, were executed in 1868 by a major pottery factory of the day, Minton, Hollins & Co., and the mosaic class of the National Art Training School at South Kensington | John Madejski Garden, named in honor of John Madejski, who funded the design, is known as a meeting point, resting place and home to a changing display of outdoor installations, and to many the heart of the V&A. The modern-day garden was designed in 2005 by landscape architect Kim Wilkie. The stepped, elliptical pool and water feature provide a serene reflection of the surrounding buildings while the lawn and planters impart a tranquil backdrop to the array of temporary outdoor displays. The design is based on the traditional simplicity of a garden courtyard with the drama and flexibility of a stage set. The garden design sits on the borderline between Modern and Postmodern. In its early days, a wide expanse of garden surrounded the South Kensington Museum, as the V&A was known before 1899. The lawns and trees belonged to the original house on the site, Brompton Park House, at one time the home of Queen Anne's gardener, Henry Wise. These gardens were gradually built over as the Museum expanded and today the enclosed garden courtyard, formed between 1857 and 1909, is a small reminder of the gardens which once filled most of the neighborhood that we now know as South Kensington. It was intended that a u-shaped arrangement would remain open to the south, with the entrance visible from Cromwell Road, but in the end the fourth side was filled in with an art library, completed in 1884 to enclose the courtyard. Viewing the buildings around the garden, visitors are treated to a wealth of decorative ornamentation – including terracotta modelling, mosaic and tiles – on each of the buildings' façades. The Museum's founding Director, Henry Cole, employed a team of decorative designers to apply painting, sculpture, mosaic and elaborate ironwork to the buildings, so that their exteriors were as beautiful and as instructive as the collections within them. Other sculptural details on the façades of the buildings are not carved but are modelled in terracotta. A clay-based ceramic, terracotta could be easily molded by hand or by tools, was more cost-effective and quicker to carve than other materials such as stone or marble. Reusable molds were used to produce many identical pieces, which saved money as each piece of sculpture or tile could be repeated many times using the same mold. The molds for the terracotta columns above the entrance, for instance, were reused for the façade of the Henry Cole Wing on Exhibition Road.
Retford - St Swithun's Church
Detail: Musical Angel.
The church was founded in 1258, but the current building is almost completely the work of restorers of 1658, 1854-5 and 1905.
St Swithun’s is a cruciform stone building consisting of chancel, with vestry, nave aisles, transepts, north chantry chapel, south porch and a 90' central embattled tower with 8 pinnacles, containing a clock and 10 bells. The oldest, virtually untouched, part is the north transept, although it has now been transformed into a chapel as a war memorial.
The tower and chancel collapsed in 1651 and were rebuilt in 1658. The tower is supported by four massive arches and the nave and aisles are separated by arcades of five bays.
There is a stone pulpit, an eagle lectern in oak, and a large organ erected in 1841. The south porch built in 1852.
In 1884-5 G G Place re-built the north aisle (with capitals imitating the 13th century ones), then north porch, north chancel aisle, clerestory, battlements and the east window of 13th century stonework. (All of these were renovated in 1905.) Galleries were removed and new seats and roof installed.
G F Bodley re-built the chantry chapel in 1873 and refurbished the chancel.
New choir stalls were erected in 1889 and in 1910 and 1914 the corporation presented new stalls for its own use.
In the north transept is an incised slab to Henry Smyth (d1496) and Sir Whatton Amcotts (d1807) by William Kinnard, architect.
The Victorian stained glass is instructive with work by Clayton & Bell, Kempe & Co, O’Connor, Hardman, Wailes and one by a local, George Shaw.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
Guide
Although there are records of a church on this site in the 13th century, the church today is a typical large town church, built on a cruciform plan with a central tower. The oldest part as it now stands is the North Transept which today is called the Lady Chapel and used for weekday or other small services. The central pillar and its two arches belong to the 14th century and still display their original painted decoration. Anciently there were two chantry chapels here known as Our Lady's Chantry and St Trinity Chantry. Their altars were against the East wall which may have been further to the East than it is now. The purpose of a chantry was to provide regular Masses for the souls of departed benefactors. A document of 1535 says that St Swithun's had four chantries and there may have been two more in the South Transept or elsewhere in the church. The neighbouring Chapelgate probably takes its name from the existence of the chantry chapels. The North Transept chapel is also a war memorial and it houses the banner of the Borough of East Retford.
The rest of the church is basically of the 15th century and is in the style often called perpendicular. The central tower collapsed in a storm in 1651, destroying much of the Chancel and South transept. It was rebuilt in 1658 and from outside it clearly has a 17th century look to it. Inside, massive piers were built to carry its weight and these low, heavy crossing arches are a feature of the church today. Looking eastward from the nave, the columns of the earlier arches can be seen, much more slender and with a much higher springing. Under the tower, on the South side high above the vicar's stall, although not easily seen with the naked eye, is a stone bearing the inscription Ano Mundi 5226 Ano Christie 1582. It was moved to there from the chantry in 1873.
There are many memorials in the church. The oldest one is a floor slab in the North-East corner of the North Transept chapel. It dates from 1496 and is in memory of Henry Smyth, but most of the memorials are of the 18th and 19th centuries.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
www.visitoruk.com/Retford/st-swithuns-church-C567-AT5017....
MAHAVATAR BABAJI CAVE
Mahāvatār Bābājī (literally; Great Avatar Dear Father) is the name given to an Indian saint and yogi by Lahiri Mahasaya and several of his disciples,[2] who reported meeting him between 1861 and 1935. Some of these meetings were described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first-hand report of Yogananda's own meeting with the yogi.[3]Another first hand account was given by Yukteswar Giri in his book The Holy Science.[4] According to Sri M's autobiography (Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master) Babaji, was Shiva. In the second last chapter of his book, he mentions Babaji changing his form to that of Shiva. All of these accounts, along with additional reported meetings, are described in various biographies.[5][6][7]According to Yogananda's autobiography, Babaji has resided for at least hundreds of years in the remote Himalayan regions of India, seen in person by only a small number of disciples and others.[3][8] The death less Master is more than 2000 years old. He belongs to a very powerful lineage of Siddha Boganthar and Rishi Agastya as his Gurus. He acquired this deathless, non perishable body through tough yogik kriyas.
Again, according to his autobiography, shortly before Yogananda left for America in 1920, Babaji came to his home in Calcutta, where the young monk sat deeply praying for divine assurance regarding the mission he was about to undertake. Babaji said to him: "Follow the behest of your guru and go to America. Fear not; you shall be protected. You are the one I have chosen to spread the message of Kriya Yoga in the West
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood. One source of information is the book Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshal Govindan.[9]According to Govindan, Babaji was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his parents. [8] V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah founded on 17 October 1952, (they claim – at the request of Babaji) a new organization, "Kriya Babaji Sangah," dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953 Mahavatar Babaji told them that he was born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal village now known as Parangipettai, Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, India.[10] Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organizations claim his place and date of birth.[10] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is Nagarajan.[9][10]
In Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi, many references are made to Mahavatar Babaji, including from Lahirī and Sri Yukteshwar.[3] In his book The Second Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ went to India and conferred with Mahavatar Babaji.[8] This would make Babaji at least 2000 years old.[11] According to Govindan's book, Babaji Nagaraj's father was the priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which he believed to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one rare jackfruit for a family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that time. He found the jackfruit when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his mother came to know about it, she flew in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived. Later on he thanked God for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or illusion. His Love for his mother became unconditional and detached."[9]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a slave in Calcutta (now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he freed Nagaraj shortly thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of wandering sannyāsin due to their radiant faces and love for God. During the next few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy scriptures like the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita.
According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult journey on foot and by boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj met Siddha Bhogarnathar and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive yogic sadhana for a long time with him. Bhogarnathar inspired Nagaraj to seek his initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha Agastya. Babaji became a disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of Kriya Kundalini Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and spent eighteen months practising yogic kriyataught to him by Siddha Agastya and Bhogarnathar. Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[9]
It is claimed that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A. Ramaiah, a young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T. Neelakantan, a famous journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of the Theosophical Society and mentor of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have appeared to each of them independently and then brought them together to work for his Mission in 1942
By Kailash Mansarovar Foundation Swami Bikash Giri www.sumeruparvat.com , www.naturalitem.com
MAHAVATAR BABAJI CAVE
Mahāvatār Bābājī (literally; Great Avatar Dear Father) is the name given to an Indian saint and yogi by Lahiri Mahasaya and several of his disciples,[2] who reported meeting him between 1861 and 1935. Some of these meetings were described by Paramahansa Yogananda in his book Autobiography of a Yogi, including a first-hand report of Yogananda's own meeting with the yogi.[3]Another first hand account was given by Yukteswar Giri in his book The Holy Science.[4] According to Sri M's autobiography (Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master) Babaji, was Shiva. In the second last chapter of his book, he mentions Babaji changing his form to that of Shiva. All of these accounts, along with additional reported meetings, are described in various biographies.[5][6][7]According to Yogananda's autobiography, Babaji has resided for at least hundreds of years in the remote Himalayan regions of India, seen in person by only a small number of disciples and others.[3][8] The death less Master is more than 2000 years old. He belongs to a very powerful lineage of Siddha Boganthar and Rishi Agastya as his Gurus. He acquired this deathless, non perishable body through tough yogik kriyas.
Again, according to his autobiography, shortly before Yogananda left for America in 1920, Babaji came to his home in Calcutta, where the young monk sat deeply praying for divine assurance regarding the mission he was about to undertake. Babaji said to him: "Follow the behest of your guru and go to America. Fear not; you shall be protected. You are the one I have chosen to spread the message of Kriya Yoga in the West
There are very few accounts of Babaji's childhood. One source of information is the book Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition by Marshal Govindan.[9]According to Govindan, Babaji was named Nagarajan (king of serpents) by his parents. [8] V.T. Neelakantan and S.A.A. Ramaiah founded on 17 October 1952, (they claim – at the request of Babaji) a new organization, "Kriya Babaji Sangah," dedicated to the teaching of Babaji's Kriya Yoga. They claim that in 1953 Mahavatar Babaji told them that he was born on 30 November 203 CE in a small coastal village now known as Parangipettai, Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, India.[10] Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of Acharyas Trust (Kriya Babaji Sangah) and their branch organizations claim his place and date of birth.[10] He was a disciple of Bogar and his birth name is Nagarajan.[9][10]
In Paramahansa Yogananda's Autobiography of a Yogi, many references are made to Mahavatar Babaji, including from Lahirī and Sri Yukteshwar.[3] In his book The Second Coming of Christ, Yogananda states that Jesus Christ went to India and conferred with Mahavatar Babaji.[8] This would make Babaji at least 2000 years old.[11] According to Govindan's book, Babaji Nagaraj's father was the priest of the village's temple. Babaji revealed only those details which he believed to be formative as well as potentially instructive to his disciples. Govindan mentioned one incident like this: "One time Nagaraj's mother had got one rare jackfruit for a family feast and put it aside. Babaji was only 4 years old at that time. He found the jackfruit when his mother was not around and ate it all. When his mother came to know about it, she flew in blind rage and stuffed a cloth inside Babaji's mouth, nearly suffocating him, but he survived. Later on he thanked God for showing him that she was to be loved without attachment or illusion. His Love for his mother became unconditional and detached."[9]
When Nagaraj was about 5 years old, someone kidnapped him and sold him as a slave in Calcutta (now Kolkata). His new owner however was a kind man and he freed Nagaraj shortly thereafter. Nagaraj then joined a small group of wandering sannyāsin due to their radiant faces and love for God. During the next few years, he wandered from place to place, studying holy scriptures like the Vedas, Upanishad, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita.
According to Marshall Govindan's book, at the age of eleven, he made a difficult journey on foot and by boat with a group of ascetics to Kataragama, Sri Lanka. Nagaraj met Siddha Bhogarnathar and became his disciple. Nagaraj performed intensive yogic sadhana for a long time with him. Bhogarnathar inspired Nagaraj to seek his initiation into Kriya Kundalini Pranayam from Siddha Agastya. Babaji became a disciple of Siddha Agastya. Nagaraj was initiated into the secrets of Kriya Kundalini Pranayama or "Vasi Yogam". Babaji made a long pilgrimage to Badrinath and spent eighteen months practising yogic kriyataught to him by Siddha Agastya and Bhogarnathar. Babaji attained self-realization shortly thereafter.[9]
It is claimed that these revelations were made by Babaji himself to S.A.A. Ramaiah, a young graduate student in geology at the University of Madras and V.T. Neelakantan, a famous journalist, and close student of Annie Besant, President of the Theosophical Society and mentor of Krishnamurti. Babaji was said to have appeared to each of them independently and then brought them together to work for his Mission in 1942
By Kailash Mansarovar Foundation Swami Bikash Giri www.sumeruparvat.com , www.naturalitem.com
Annette Kelm shows a selection of completely new works in a very clearly structured open presentation. The pictures themselves are full of riddles. What at a first glance may appear simple or even easily comprehensible is beginning to look weird and profound when taking a closer look. It always seems as if something inappropriate or absurd has crept into the pictures. In the series of a field of sunflowers, for example, a feeling of uncertainty is conveyed by the perspective and the strong light. In “Michaela, Coffee Break” one is wondering about the awkward posture of the depicted young lady. Why does she hold the cup so high? Is it a quotation of an old-fashioned gesture used in painting? All these questions remain without answer. With her crude assemblies Annette Kelm is creating a certain irritation, which instils curiosity and the search for links. Particularly instructive in this regard is her series about photographs by Herbert Tobias, an important portrait photographer of the 1960s and 1970s. Annette Kelm has photographed his late works for album covers and their presentation in a museum; she has thereby exposed the cultural layering which one is subjected to in any kind of retrospective. It is exactly this interaction of strange references and reminiscences that distinguishes the works by Annette Kelm and makes them unique among the more recent developments in photography.
Learning from Failure
Scriptures: Luke 22:31-34
The disciple Peter was a man of great faith and bold action. But as readers of the New Testament know, his brash style sometimes led him to make humiliating mistakes. More than once, this disciple had to wear the label of "miserable failure" rather than that of "obedient servant."
We can all relate when it comes to falling short of expectations. Obedience to God is a learning process, and failure is a part of our development as humble servants. When we yield to temptation or rebel against God's authority, we realize that sin has few rewards, and even those are fleeting.
Failure is an excellent learning tool, as Peter could certainly attest. Through trial and error, he discovered that humility is required of believers (John 13:5-14); that God's ways are higher than the world's ways (Mark 8:33); and that one should never take his eyes off Jesus (Matt. 14:30). He took each of those lessons to heart and thereby grew stronger in his faith. Isn't that Romans 8:28 in action? God caused Peter's failures to be put to good use as training material because the disciple was eager to mature and serve.
God doesn't reward rebellion or wrongdoing. However, by His grace, He blesses those who choose repentance and embrace chastisement as a tool for growth.
We would probably all prefer to grow in our faith without ever making a mistake before God's eyes, but we cannot deny that missteps are instructive. Failure teaches believers that it is much wiser and more profitable to be obedient to the Lord. That's a lesson we all should take to heart.
Dr. Charles Stanley
Retford - St Swithun's Church
Detail: Angel.
The church was founded in 1258, but the current building is almost completely the work of restorers of 1658, 1854-5 and 1905.
St Swithun’s is a cruciform stone building consisting of chancel, with vestry, nave aisles, transepts, north chantry chapel, south porch and a 90' central embattled tower with 8 pinnacles, containing a clock and 10 bells. The oldest, virtually untouched, part is the north transept, although it has now been transformed into a chapel as a war memorial.
The tower and chancel collapsed in 1651 and were rebuilt in 1658. The tower is supported by four massive arches and the nave and aisles are separated by arcades of five bays.
There is a stone pulpit, an eagle lectern in oak, and a large organ erected in 1841. The south porch built in 1852.
In 1884-5 G G Place re-built the north aisle (with capitals imitating the 13th century ones), then north porch, north chancel aisle, clerestory, battlements and the east window of 13th century stonework. (All of these were renovated in 1905.) Galleries were removed and new seats and roof installed.
G F Bodley re-built the chantry chapel in 1873 and refurbished the chancel.
New choir stalls were erected in 1889 and in 1910 and 1914 the corporation presented new stalls for its own use.
In the north transept is an incised slab to Henry Smyth (d1496) and Sir Whatton Amcotts (d1807) by William Kinnard, architect.
The Victorian stained glass is instructive with work by Clayton & Bell, Kempe & Co, O’Connor, Hardman, Wailes and one by a local, George Shaw.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
Guide
Although there are records of a church on this site in the 13th century, the church today is a typical large town church, built on a cruciform plan with a central tower. The oldest part as it now stands is the North Transept which today is called the Lady Chapel and used for weekday or other small services. The central pillar and its two arches belong to the 14th century and still display their original painted decoration. Anciently there were two chantry chapels here known as Our Lady's Chantry and St Trinity Chantry. Their altars were against the East wall which may have been further to the East than it is now. The purpose of a chantry was to provide regular Masses for the souls of departed benefactors. A document of 1535 says that St Swithun's had four chantries and there may have been two more in the South Transept or elsewhere in the church. The neighbouring Chapelgate probably takes its name from the existence of the chantry chapels. The North Transept chapel is also a war memorial and it houses the banner of the Borough of East Retford.
The rest of the church is basically of the 15th century and is in the style often called perpendicular. The central tower collapsed in a storm in 1651, destroying much of the Chancel and South transept. It was rebuilt in 1658 and from outside it clearly has a 17th century look to it. Inside, massive piers were built to carry its weight and these low, heavy crossing arches are a feature of the church today. Looking eastward from the nave, the columns of the earlier arches can be seen, much more slender and with a much higher springing. Under the tower, on the South side high above the vicar's stall, although not easily seen with the naked eye, is a stone bearing the inscription Ano Mundi 5226 Ano Christie 1582. It was moved to there from the chantry in 1873.
There are many memorials in the church. The oldest one is a floor slab in the North-East corner of the North Transept chapel. It dates from 1496 and is in memory of Henry Smyth, but most of the memorials are of the 18th and 19th centuries.
southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/retford-st-swithun/hin...
www.visitoruk.com/Retford/st-swithuns-church-C567-AT5017....
Plaque on Institute to mark opening of renovations 5 Mar 1988.
Council Chambers opened Jul 1877. Foundation stone Institute 4 Feb 1878 by Charles Mann, designed by C E Anthony, opened mid 1878 adjacent to Council Chambers. Renovations, combining both buildings, opened 18 Jul 1942 by J T Mortlock, further additions opened 22 Jul 1952 by Mrs J T Mortlock.
“A meeting of the ratepayers of the District of Stanley was held in the large room of Bayfield's Hotel on Saturday evening March 3, to authorize the District Council to raise a loan to build a Council Chamber. About 60 persons were present. . . the Council had received notice, to quit the premises occupied by them. They had been greatly shifted about during the last few years. The hotelkeepers had obliged them in times past.” [Register 7 Mar 1877]
“Mintaro. . . Our new Council Chamber is now ready for the roof.” [Advertiser 12 Jul 1877]
“Mintaro. . . The Council Chamber is also making rapid strides towards completion, and will improve the look of our Main-street. The Clerk of the Stanley District Council will not be very sorry to change his quarters, for he is now very cramped for room. There is some talk of building the Institute at once, and I believe the Committee have a considerable sum in hand and promised, which, if collected, together with the Government subsidy, would complete a suitable building. A Committee has also been formed, having for its object an entertainment in aid of its funds. I wish them success, as an Institute is of material service in any community.” [Kapunda Herald 13 Jul 1877]
“It is but a short time since our District Council office was completed, and now the Institute is in course of erection. . . folks, no matter how well they do here, are inclined to leave even for worse pastures. We have just lost our medical practitioner, we are now losing our saddler, and also our storekeeper. . . Our mill is not prospering very favorably at present, the farmers not having brought in their wheat yet, being no doubt too busy to do so at present.” [Northern Argus 29 Jan 1878]
“The Hon. Charles Mann, QC, Attorney-General, accompanied by Mr. W. Townsend, M.P., visited Mintaro on Monday, February 4, for the purpose of laying the foundation-stone of the new Institute. This building is situated in the main street, within a few yards of the new District Council-chamber. . . the Institute will be 58 feet long by 25 feet wide, containing a large hall. . . with two smaller apartments. . . at the end, to be used as reading-room and library. At the entrance is a spacious porch. . . The material used in its construction is rubble from Bowman's land, some capital freestone from Mr. Kelsh's quarry, and blue flagstone from the famous Mintaro quarry. . . At 5 o'clock a public dinner was held in the new District Council Chamber. About 30 gentlemen sat down to a hot repast provided in first-class style by Host Anthony.” [Express & Telegraph 6 Feb 1878]
“the roof is now on the Mintaro Institute, and the internal fittings will soon be completed.” [Northern Argus 4 Jun 1878]
“The rules of the Mintaro Institute have been approved by the Minister of Education.” [Express & Telegraph 11 Oct 1878]
“The third annual show in connection with the Mintaro Horticultural and Floricultural Society was held at the Mintaro Institute. . . The council chamber, which was used as an annexe for the display of poultry, dairy produce, &c, was filled with a large and excellent collection of exhibits.” [Advertiser 22 Oct 1883]
“The fifth annual show under the auspices of the Mintaro Horticultural and Floricultural Society was held on Tuesday, October 27. The only drawback to the exhibition was the insufficiency of room for the flowers, &c., otherwise the show was a decided success. The Institute and Council Chamber, likewise a vacant space between the two buildings were utilised, but even then the room was limited.” [Northern Argus30 Oct 1885]
“On Friday evening a concert was given in the Mintaro Institute Hall to celebrate the re-opening of the institute, which has been closed to the public .for some weeks to allow of the improvements to be made. These consisted of two additional rooms and the lengthening of the hall.” [Register 29 Dec 1905]
“An interesting and instructive debate took place in the Mintaro Institute Hall on Wednesday evening, between the Mintaro and Clare Literary Societies. The question was, 'The Transfer of the Northern Territory under the proposed agreement of the Price Government'.” [Northern Argus 28 Jun 1907]
“Diphtheria Immunisation in the Town and District of Clare. . . of all school children under the age of 12 years in our districts. . . In all nine schools were done in a district of an area of 160 square miles. . . the children of. . . two schools, 11 miles away, at Mintaro, were injected at Mintaro Institute building.” [Northern Argus 10 Aug 1934]
“Council is agreeable to transfer the Mintaro Council Chamber and block of land to a responsible body under the following conditions: — 1. Council to be liable for no expenses connected with the transfer. 2. Officers of the Council to have access to the building at all times on Council business. 3. Provision to be made at the rear of building for storage of Council's plant and equipment.” [Northern Argus 14 Nov 1941]
“Mintaro Institute. Permanent Alterations and Additions. These were declared open to public use on Saturday night, 18th July, when Mr. M. L. Giles, President of the Mintaro Institute presided, . . He publicly thanked the District Council of Clare and the Councillors for making available to them the old district council chamber.” [Northern Argus 24 Jul 1942]
“Mintaro Institute, declared open by Mr. J. T. Mortlock. . .The old Council chamber has been acquired from the Clare District Council and has been renovated and a wooden floor has been laid down over the existing slate floor and suitable supper conveniences provided. The Council chamber will in future be known as the Assembly room and will be available for suppers, also as a room for lodge meetings, sewing circles and similar activities. Our honor rolls, portraits of our pioneers and similar treasures are all housed in the Assembly room, and I should like to point out that we are almost unique amongst South Australian Institutes is possessing a South African War Memorial in addition to one of the Great War 1914-1918.” [Northern Argus 31 Jul 1942]
“a most enjoyable dance was held in the Mintaro Institute in aid of the Food for Britain appeal. It was organised by the local Red Cross members and was well attended.” [Northern Argus3 Jan 1946]
“work is completed on the alterations to the bio box at the Institute, so it looks as though the Talkies will soon be coming to Mintaro. . . All roads led -to Mintaro Institute last Tuesday — the occasion being the 1st Birthday Party of the local C.W.A. Branch. Over 76 ladies assembled in the Hall.” [Northern Argus 6 Oct 1949]
“Mintaro Institute. . . Plans are well in hand now for the Grand Opening of the new additions and' improvements at the Institute on Tuesday, July 22nd. A Social Afternoon is to be held in the Institute when Mrs. J. T. Mortlock will declare the new premises 'open' and a photo of late J. T. Mortlock Esq., whose magnificent bequest made the work possible, will be unveiled.” [Northern Argus 9 Jul 1952]
Square and Compasses - This symbolic stone was removed from above the entrance to the Lambton Mills Masonic Temple erected by Mimico Lodge on the north side of Dundas Street in 1882.
Masonic Square and Compasses.
The Square and Compasses (or, more correctly, a square and a set of compasses joined together) is the single most identifiable symbol of Freemasonry. Both the square and compasses are architect's tools and are used in Masonic ritual as emblems to teach symbolic lessons. Some Lodges and rituals explain these symbols as lessons in conduct: for example, Duncan's Masonic Monitor of 1866 explains them as: "The square, to square our actions; The compasses, to circumscribe and keep us within bounds with all mankind".
However, as Freemasonry is non-dogmatic, there is no general interpretation for these symbols (or any Masonic symbol) that is used by Freemasonry as a whole.
Square and Compasses:
Source: Mackey's Encyclopedia of Freemasonry
These two symbols have been so long and so universally combined — to teach us, as says an early instruction, "to square our actions and to keep them within due bounds," they are so seldom seen apart, but are so kept together, either as two Great Lights, or as a jewel worn once by the Master of the Lodge, now by the Past Master—that they have come at last to be recognized as the proper badge of a Master Mason, just as the Triple Tau is of a Royal Arch Mason or the Passion Cross of a Knight Templar.
So universally has this symbol been recognized, even by the profane world, as the peculiar characteristic of Freemasonry, that it has recently been made in the United States the subject of a legal decision. A manufacturer of flour having made, in 1873, an application to the Patent Office for permission to adopt the Square and Compasses as a trade-mark, the Commissioner of Patents, .J. M. Thatcher, refused the permission as the mark was a Masonic symbol.
If this emblem were something other than precisely what it is—either less known", less significant, or fully and universally understood—all this might readily be admitted. But, Considering its peculiar character and relation to the public, an anomalous question is presented. There can be no doubt that this device, so commonly worn and employed by Masons, has an established mystic significance, universally recognized as existing; whether comprehended by all or not, is not material to this issue. In view of the magnitude and extent of the Masonic organization, it is impossible to divest its symbols, or at least this particular symbol—perhaps the best known of all—of its ordinary signification, wherever displaced, either as an arbitrary character or otherwise.
It will be universally understood, or misunderstood, as having a Masonic significance; and, therefore, as a trade-mark, must constantly work deception. Nothing could be more mischievous than to create as a monopoly, and uphold by the poser of lacy anything so calculated. as applied to purposes of trade. to be misinterpreted, to mislead all classes, and to constantly foster suggestions of mystery in affairs of business (see Infringing upon Freemasonry, also Imitative Societies, and Clandestine).
In a religious work by John Davies, entitled Summa Totalis, or All in All and the Same Forever, printed in 1607, we find an allusion to the Square and Compasses by a profane in a really Masonic sense. The author, who proposes to describe mystically the form of the Deity, says in his dedication:
Yet I this forme of formelesse Deity,
Drewe by the Squire and Compasse of our Creed.
In Masonic symbolism the Square and Compasses refer to the Freemason's duty to the Craft and to himself; hence it is properly a symbol of brotherhood, and there significantly adopted as the badge or token of the Fraternity.
Berage, in his work on the higher Degrees, Les plus secrets Mystéres des Hauts Grades, or The Most Secret Mysteries of the High Grades, gives a new interpretation to the symbol. He says: "The Square and the Compasses represent the union of the Old and New Testaments. None of the high Degrees recognize this interpretation, although their symbolism of the two implements differs somewhat from that of Symbolic Freemasonry.
The Square is with them peculiarly appropriated to the lower Degrees, as founded on the Operative Art; while the Compasses, as an implement of higher character and uses, is attributed to the Decrees, which claim to have a more elevated and philosophical foundation. Thus they speak of the initiate, when he passes from the Blue Lodge to the Lodge of Perfection, as 'passing from the Square to the Compasses,' to indicate a progressive elevation in his studies. Yet even in the high Degrees, the square and compasses combined retain their primitive signification as a symbol of brotherhood and as a badge of the Order."
Square and Compass:
Source: The Builder October 1916
By Bro. B. C. Ward, Iowa
Worshipful Master and Brethren: Let us behold the glorious beauty that lies hidden beneath the symbolism of the Square and Compass; and first as to the Square. Geometry, the first and noblest of the sciences, is the basis on which the superstructure of Masonry has been erected. As you know, the word "Geometry" is derived from two Greek words which mean "to measure the earth," so that Geometry originated in measurement; and in those early days, when land first began to be measured, the Square, being a right angle, was the instrument used, so that in time the Square began to symbolize the Earth. And later it began to symbolize, Masonically, the earthly-in man, that is man's lower nature, and still later it began to symbolize man's duty in his earthly relations, or his moral obligations to his Fellowmen. The symbolism of the Square is as ancient as the Pyramids. The Egyptians used it in building the Pyramids. The base of every pyramid is a perfect square, and to the Egyptians the Square was their highest and most sacred emblem. Even the Chinese many, many centuries ago used the Square to represent Good, and Confucius in his writings speaks of the Square to represent a Just man.
As Masons we have adopted the 47th Problem of Euclid as the rule by which to determine or prove a perfect Square. Many of us remember with what interest we solved that problem in our school days. The Square has become our most significant Emblem. It rests upon the open Bible on this altar; it is one of the three great Lights; and it is the chief ornament of the Worshipful Master. There is a good reason why this distinction has been conferred upon the Square. There can be nothing truer than a perfect Square--a right angle. Hence the Square has become an emblem of Perfection.
Now a few words as to the Compass: Astronomy was the second great science promulgated among men. In the process of Man's evolution there came a time when he began to look up to the stars and wonder at the vaulted Heavens above him. When he began to study the stars, he found that the Square was not adapted to the measurement of the Heavens. He must have circular measure; he needed to draw a circle from a central point, and so the Compass was employed. By the use of the Compass man began to study the starry Heavens, and as the Square primarily symbolized the Earth, the Compass began to symbolize the Heavens, the celestial canopy, the study of which has led men to think of God, and adore Him as the Supreme Architect of the Universe. In later times the Compass began to symbolize the spiritual or higher nature of man, and it is a significant fact that the circumference of a circle, which is a line without end, has become an emblem of Eternity and symbolizes Divinity; so the Compass, and the circle drawn by the Compass, both point men Heavenward and Godward.
The Masonic teaching concerning the two points of the Compass is very interesting and instructive. The novitiate in Masonry, as he kneels at this altar, and asks for Light sees the Square, which symbolizes his lower nature, he may well note the position of the Compass. As he takes another step, and asks for more Light, the position of the Compass is changed somewhat, symbolizing that his spiritual nature can, in some measure, overcome his evil tendencies. As he takes another step in Masonry, and asks for further Light, and hears the significant words, "and God said let there be Light, and there was Light," he sees the Compass in new light; and for the first time he sees the meaning, thus unmistakably alluding to the sacred and eternal truth that as the Heavens are higher than the Earth, so the spiritual is higher than the material, and the spiritual in man must have its proper place, and should be above his lower nature, and dominate all his thoughts and actions. That eminent Philosopher, Edmund Burke, once said, "It is ordained that men of intemperate passions cannot be free. Their passions forge the chains which bind them, and make them slaves." Burke was right. Masonry, through the beautiful symbolism of the Compass, tells us how we can be free men, by permitting the spiritual within us to overcome our evil tendencies, and dominate all our thoughts and actions. Brethren, sometimes in the silent quiet hour, as we think of this conflict between our lower and higher natures, we sometimes say in the words of another, "Show me the way and let me bravely climb to where all conflicts with the flesh shall cease. Show me that way. Show me the way up to a higher plane where my body shall be servant of my Soul. Show me that way."
Brethren, if that prayer expresses desire of our hearts, let us take heed to the beautiful teachings of the Compass, which silently and persistently tells each one of us,
"You should not in the valley stay
While the great horizons stretch away
The very cliffs that wall you round
Are ladders up to higher ground.
And Heaven draws near as you ascend,
The Breeze invites, the Stars befriend.
All things are beckoning to the Best,
Then climb toward God and find sweet Rest.”
The secrets of Freemasonry are concerned with its traditional modes of recognition. It is not a secret society, since all members are free to acknowledge their membership and will do so in response to enquiries for respectable reasons. Its constitutions and rules are available to the public. There is no secret about any of its aims and principles. Like many other societies, it regards some of its internal affairs as private matters for its members. In history there have been times and places where promoting equality, freedom of thought or liberty of conscience was dangerous. Most importantly though is a question of perspective. Each aspect of the craft has a meaning. Freemasonry has been described as a system of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols. Such characteristics as virtue, honour and mercy, such virtues as temperance, fortitude, prudence and justice are empty clichés and hollow words unless presented within an ordered and closed framework. The lessons are not secret but the presentation is kept private to promote a clearer understanding in good time. It is also possible to view Masonic secrecy not as secrecy in and of itself, but rather as a symbol of privacy and discretion. By not revealing Masonic secrets, or acknowledging the many published exposures, freemasons demonstrate that they are men of discretion, worthy of confidences, and that they place a high value on their word and bond.
Masonic Square and Compasses.
The Square and Compasses (or, more correctly, a square and a set of compasses joined together) is the single most identifiable symbol of Freemasonry. Both the square and compasses are architect's tools and are used in Masonic ritual as emblems to teach symbolic lessons. Some Lodges and rituals explain these symbols as lessons in conduct: for example, Duncan's Masonic Monitor of 1866 explains them as: "The square, to square our actions; The compasses, to circumscribe and keep us within bounds with all mankind".
However, as Freemasonry is non-dogmatic, there is no general interpretation for these symbols (or any Masonic symbol) that is used by Freemasonry as a whole.
Square and Compasses:
Source: Mackey's Encyclopedia of Freemasonry
These two symbols have been so long and so universally combined — to teach us, as says an early instruction, "to square our actions and to keep them within due bounds," they are so seldom seen apart, but are so kept together, either as two Great Lights, or as a jewel worn once by the Master of the Lodge, now by the Past Master—that they have come at last to be recognized as the proper badge of a Master Mason, just as the Triple Tau is of a Royal Arch Mason or the Passion Cross of a Knight Templar.
So universally has this symbol been recognized, even by the profane world, as the peculiar characteristic of Freemasonry, that it has recently been made in the United States the subject of a legal decision. A manufacturer of flour having made, in 1873, an application to the Patent Office for permission to adopt the Square and Compasses as a trade-mark, the Commissioner of Patents, .J. M. Thatcher, refused the permission as the mark was a Masonic symbol.
If this emblem were something other than precisely what it is—either less known", less significant, or fully and universally understood—all this might readily be admitted. But, Considering its peculiar character and relation to the public, an anomalous question is presented. There can be no doubt that this device, so commonly worn and employed by Masons, has an established mystic significance, universally recognized as existing; whether comprehended by all or not, is not material to this issue. In view of the magnitude and extent of the Masonic organization, it is impossible to divest its symbols, or at least this particular symbol—perhaps the best known of all—of its ordinary signification, wherever displaced, either as an arbitrary character or otherwise.
It will be universally understood, or misunderstood, as having a Masonic significance; and, therefore, as a trade-mark, must constantly work deception. Nothing could be more mischievous than to create as a monopoly, and uphold by the poser of lacy anything so calculated. as applied to purposes of trade. to be misinterpreted, to mislead all classes, and to constantly foster suggestions of mystery in affairs of business (see Infringing upon Freemasonry, also Imitative Societies, and Clandestine).
In a religious work by John Davies, entitled Summa Totalis, or All in All and the Same Forever, printed in 1607, we find an allusion to the Square and Compasses by a profane in a really Masonic sense. The author, who proposes to describe mystically the form of the Deity, says in his dedication:
Yet I this forme of formelesse Deity,
Drewe by the Squire and Compasse of our Creed.
In Masonic symbolism the Square and Compasses refer to the Freemason's duty to the Craft and to himself; hence it is properly a symbol of brotherhood, and there significantly adopted as the badge or token of the Fraternity.
Berage, in his work on the higher Degrees, Les plus secrets Mystéres des Hauts Grades, or The Most Secret Mysteries of the High Grades, gives a new interpretation to the symbol. He says: "The Square and the Compasses represent the union of the Old and New Testaments. None of the high Degrees recognize this interpretation, although their symbolism of the two implements differs somewhat from that of Symbolic Freemasonry.
The Square is with them peculiarly appropriated to the lower Degrees, as founded on the Operative Art; while the Compasses, as an implement of higher character and uses, is attributed to the Decrees, which claim to have a more elevated and philosophical foundation. Thus they speak of the initiate, when he passes from the Blue Lodge to the Lodge of Perfection, as 'passing from the Square to the Compasses,' to indicate a progressive elevation in his studies. Yet even in the high Degrees, the square and compasses combined retain their primitive signification as a symbol of brotherhood and as a badge of the Order."
Square and Compass:
Source: The Builder October 1916
By Bro. B. C. Ward, Iowa
Worshipful Master and Brethren: Let us behold the glorious beauty that lies hidden beneath the symbolism of the Square and Compass; and first as to the Square. Geometry, the first and noblest of the sciences, is the basis on which the superstructure of Masonry has been erected. As you know, the word "Geometry" is derived from two Greek words which mean "to measure the earth," so that Geometry originated in measurement; and in those early days, when land first began to be measured, the Square, being a right angle, was the instrument used, so that in time the Square began to symbolize the Earth. And later it began to symbolize, Masonically, the earthly-in man, that is man's lower nature, and still later it began to symbolize man's duty in his earthly relations, or his moral obligations to his Fellowmen. The symbolism of the Square is as ancient as the Pyramids. The Egyptians used it in building the Pyramids. The base of every pyramid is a perfect square, and to the Egyptians the Square was their highest and most sacred emblem. Even the Chinese many, many centuries ago used the Square to represent Good, and Confucius in his writings speaks of the Square to represent a Just man.
As Masons we have adopted the 47th Problem of Euclid as the rule by which to determine or prove a perfect Square. Many of us remember with what interest we solved that problem in our school days. The Square has become our most significant Emblem. It rests upon the open Bible on this altar; it is one of the three great Lights; and it is the chief ornament of the Worshipful Master. There is a good reason why this distinction has been conferred upon the Square. There can be nothing truer than a perfect Square--a right angle. Hence the Square has become an emblem of Perfection.
Now a few words as to the Compass: Astronomy was the second great science promulgated among men. In the process of Man's evolution there came a time when he began to look up to the stars and wonder at the vaulted Heavens above him. When he began to study the stars, he found that the Square was not adapted to the measurement of the Heavens. He must have circular measure; he needed to draw a circle from a central point, and so the Compass was employed. By the use of the Compass man began to study the starry Heavens, and as the Square primarily symbolized the Earth, the Compass began to symbolize the Heavens, the celestial canopy, the study of which has led men to think of God, and adore Him as the Supreme Architect of the Universe. In later times the Compass began to symbolize the spiritual or higher nature of man, and it is a significant fact that the circumference of a circle, which is a line without end, has become an emblem of Eternity and symbolizes Divinity; so the Compass, and the circle drawn by the Compass, both point men Heavenward and Godward.
The Masonic teaching concerning the two points of the Compass is very interesting and instructive. The novitiate in Masonry, as he kneels at this altar, and asks for Light sees the Square, which symbolizes his lower nature, he may well note the position of the Compass. As he takes another step, and asks for more Light, the position of the Compass is changed somewhat, symbolizing that his spiritual nature can, in some measure, overcome his evil tendencies. As he takes another step in Masonry, and asks for further Light, and hears the significant words, "and God said let there be Light, and there was Light," he sees the Compass in new light; and for the first time he sees the meaning, thus unmistakably alluding to the sacred and eternal truth that as the Heavens are higher than the Earth, so the spiritual is higher than the material, and the spiritual in man must have its proper place, and should be above his lower nature, and dominate all his thoughts and actions. That eminent Philosopher, Edmund Burke, once said, "It is ordained that men of intemperate passions cannot be free. Their passions forge the chains which bind them, and make them slaves." Burke was right. Masonry, through the beautiful symbolism of the Compass, tells us how we can be free men, by permitting the spiritual within us to overcome our evil tendencies, and dominate all our thoughts and actions. Brethren, sometimes in the silent quiet hour, as we think of this conflict between our lower and higher natures, we sometimes say in the words of another, "Show me the way and let me bravely climb to where all conflicts with the flesh shall cease. Show me that way. Show me the way up to a higher plane where my body shall be servant of my Soul. Show me that way."
Brethren, if that prayer expresses desire of our hearts, let us take heed to the beautiful teachings of the Compass, which silently and persistently tells each one of us,
"You should not in the valley stay
While the great horizons stretch away
The very cliffs that wall you round
Are ladders up to higher ground.
And Heaven draws near as you ascend,
The Breeze invites, the Stars befriend.
All things are beckoning to the Best,
Then climb toward God and find sweet Rest."