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The Postcard
A Comique Series postcard that was published by the Inter-Art Co. of Florence House, Barnes, London SW. The artwork was by Donald McGill.
The card was posted on Friday the 22nd. August 1924 to:
Mr. A. Smale,
c/o Mrs. Land,
3, Marine Terrace,
Margate.
The pencilled message on the divided back of the card was as follows:
"Dear Bert,
So glad you are
enjoying yourself,
but I wish you had
better weather.
Had a card from
Dolly and Addy on
Monday.
Love from Mother."
Clarence Darrow
So what else happened on the day that Bert's mother posted the card?
Well, on the 22nd. August 1924, Clarence Darrow presented his closing argument in the Leopold and Loeb case.
Leopold and Loeb, were two wealthy students at the University of Chicago who kidnapped and murdered 14-year-old Bobby Franks in Chicago, Illinois in May 1924.
They committed the murder – characterized at the time as "the crime of the century" – hoping to demonstrate superior intellect, which they believed enabled and entitled them to carry out a "perfect crime" without consequences.
After the two men were arrested, Loeb's family retained Clarence Darrow as lead counsel for their defense. Darrow's twelve-hour summation at their sentencing hearing is noted for its influential criticism of capital punishment as retributive rather than transformative justice.
Both young men were sentenced to life imprisonment plus 99 years. Loeb was murdered by a fellow prisoner in 1936. Leopold was released on parole in 1958. The case has since served as the inspiration for several dramatic works.
Leopold and Loeb's Murder of Bobby Franks
Leopold and Loeb, who were 19 and 18 respectively at the time, settled on kidnapping and murdering a younger adolescent as their perfect crime.
They spent seven months planning everything, from the method of abduction to disposal of the body. To obfuscate the actual nature of their crime and motive, they decided to make a ransom demand, and devised an intricate plan for collecting it involving a long series of complex instructions to be communicated, one set at a time, by phone.
They typed the final set of instructions involving the actual money drop in the form of a ransom note, using the typewriter stolen from the fraternity house. A chisel was selected as the murder weapon and purchased.
After a lengthy search for a suitable victim, mostly on the grounds of the Harvard School for Boys in the Kenwood area, where Leopold had been educated, the pair decided upon Robert "Bobby" Franks, the 14-year-old son of wealthy Chicago watch manufacturer Jacob Franks.
Bobby Franks was Loeb's second cousin and an across-the-street neighbor who had played tennis at the Loeb residence several times.
Leopold and Loeb put their plan in motion on the afternoon of the 21st. May 1924. Using an automobile that Leopold rented under the name Morton D. Ballard, they offered Franks a ride as he walked home from school.
The boy initially refused, because his destination was less than two blocks away, but Loeb persuaded him to enter the car to discuss a tennis racket that he had been using.
The precise sequence of events that followed remains in dispute, but a preponderance of opinion placed Leopold behind the wheel of the car while Loeb sat in the back seat with the chisel.
Loeb struck Franks, who was sitting in front of him in the passenger seat, several times in the head with the chisel, then dragged him into the back seat and gagged him, where he died.
With the body on the floor of the back seat, the men drove to their predetermined dumping spot near Wolf Lake in Hammond, Indiana, 25 miles (40 km) south of Chicago.
After nightfall, they removed and discarded Franks' clothes, then concealed the body in a culvert along the Pennsylvania Railroad tracks north of the lake.
In order to obscure the body's identity, they poured hydrochloric acid on Franks' face and genitals to disguise the fact that he had been circumcised, as circumcision was unusual among non-Jews in the United States at the time.
The Ransom Note
By the time the two men returned to Chicago, word had already spread that Franks was missing. Leopold called Franks' mother, identifying himself as "George Johnson", and told her that Franks had been kidnapped; instructions for delivering the ransom would follow.
After mailing the typed ransom note and burning their blood-stained clothing, then cleaning the blood stains from the rented vehicle's upholstery, they spent the remainder of the evening playing cards.
Once the Franks family received the ransom note on the following morning, Leopold called a second time and dictated the first set of instructions for the ransom payment.
The intricate plan stalled almost immediately when a nervous family member forgot the address of the store where he was supposed to receive the next set of directions, and it was abandoned entirely when word came that Franks' body had been found.
Leopold and Loeb destroyed the typewriter and burned a car blanket that they had used to move the body. They then went about their lives as usual.
Chicago police launched an intensive investigation and rewards were offered for information. Both Leopold and Loeb enjoyed chatting with friends and family members about the murder. Leopold discussed the case with his professor and a girl friend, joking that he would confess and give her the reward money.
Loeb helped a couple of reporter friends of his find the drug store he and Leopold had tried to send Jacob Franks to, and when asked to describe Bobby he replied:
"If I were to murder anybody, it would
be just such a cocky little son of a bitch
as Bobby Franks."
Police found a pair of eyeglasses near Franks' body. Although common in prescription and frame, they were fitted with an unusual hinge purchased by only three customers in Chicago, one of whom was Leopold.
When questioned, Leopold offered the possibility that his glasses might have dropped out of his pocket during a bird-watching trip the previous weekend.
Leopold and Loeb were summoned for formal questioning on the 29th. May. They asserted that on the night of the murder, they had picked up two women in Chicago using Leopold's car, then dropped them off some time later near a golf course without learning their last names.
However their alibi was exposed as a fabrication when Leopold's chauffeur told police that he was repairing Leopold's car while the men claimed to be using it.
Also the chauffeur's wife confirmed that the car was parked in the Leopold garage on the night of the murder. The destroyed typewriter was recovered from the Jackson Park Lagoon on the 7th. June.
Confessions
Loeb was the first to confess. He asserted that Leopold had planned everything and had killed Franks in the back seat of the car while he (Loeb) drove. Leopold's confession followed swiftly thereafter. He insisted that he was the driver and Loeb the murderer.
Their confessions otherwise corroborated most of the evidence in the case. Both confessions were announced by the state's attorney on the 31st. May.
Leopold later claimed, long after Loeb was dead, that he pleaded in vain with Loeb to admit to killing Franks. He quoted Loeb as saying:
"Mompsie feels less terrible than
she might, thinking you did it, and
I'm not going to take that shred of
comfort away from her."
Most observers believed that Loeb did strike the fatal blows. Some circumstantial evidence – including testimony from eyewitness Carl Ulvigh, who claimed that he saw Loeb driving and Leopold in the back seat minutes before the kidnapping – suggested that Leopold could have been the killer.
Both Leopold and Loeb admitted that they were driven by their thrill-seeking, Übermenschen (supermen) delusions, and their aspiration to commit a "perfect crime".
Neither claimed to have looked forward to the killing, but Leopold admitted interest in learning what it would feel like to be a murderer. He was disappointed to note that he felt the same as ever.
The Trial of Leopold and Loeb
The trial of Leopold and Loeb at Chicago's Cook County Criminal Court became a media spectacle. The Leopold and Loeb families hired the renowned criminal defense attorney Clarence Darrow to lead the defense team.
It was rumored that Darrow was paid $1 million for his services, but he was actually paid $70,000 (equivalent to $1,200,000 in 2022). Darrow took the case because he was a staunch opponent of capital punishment.
While it was generally assumed that the men's defense would be based on a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity, Darrow concluded that a jury trial would almost certainly end in conviction and the death penalty.
Thus he elected to enter a plea of guilty, hoping to convince Cook County Circuit Court Judge John R. Caverly to impose sentences of life imprisonment.
The trial, technically an extended sentencing hearing, as their guilty pleas had already been accepted, ran for thirty-two days.
The state's attorney, Robert E. Crowe, presented over 100 witnesses, documenting details of the crime.
The defense presented extensive psychiatric testimony in an effort to establish mitigating circumstances, including childhood neglect in the form of absent parenting, and in Leopold's case, sexual abuse by a governess.
One piece of evidence was a letter written by Leopold claiming that he and Loeb were having a homosexual affair. Both the prosecution and the defense interpreted this information as supportive of their own position.
Darrow called a series of expert witnesses, who offered a catalog of Leopold's and Loeb's abnormalities. One witness testified to their dysfunctional endocrine glands, another to the delusions that had led to their crime.
Darrow's Speech
Darrow's impassioned, eight-hour-long "masterful plea" at the conclusion of the hearing has been called the finest speech of his career. Its principal arguments were that the methods and punishments of the American justice system were inhumane, and the youth and immaturity of the accused:
"This terrible crime was inherent in his organism, and it came from some ancestor. Is any blame attached because somebody took Nietzsche's philosophy seriously and fashioned his life upon it? It is hardly fair to hang a 19-year-old boy for the philosophy that was taught him at the university.
We read of killing one hundred thousand men in a day [during World War I]. We read about it and we rejoiced in it – if it was the other fellows who were killed. We were fed on flesh and drank blood.
Even down to the prattling babe. I need not tell you how many upright, honorable young boys have come into this court charged with murder, some saved and some sent to their death, boys who fought in this war and learned to place a cheap value on human life. You know it and I know it. These boys were brought up in it.
It will take fifty years to wipe it out of the human heart, if ever. I know this, that after the Civil War in 1865, crimes of this sort increased, marvelously. No one needs to tell me that crime has no cause. It has as definite a cause as any other disease, and I know that out of the hatred and bitterness of the Civil War crime increased as America had never seen before.
I know that Europe is going through the same experience today; I know it has followed every war; and I know it has influenced these boys so that life was not the same to them as it would have been if the world had not made red with blood.
Your Honor knows that in this very court crimes of violence have increased growing out of the war. Not necessarily by those who fought but by those that learned that blood was cheap, and human life was cheap, and if the State could take it lightly why not the boy?
Has the court any right to consider anything but these two boys? The State says that your Honor has a right to consider the welfare of the community, as you have. If the welfare of the community would be benefited by taking these lives, well and good. I think it would work evil that no one could measure.
Has your Honor a right to consider the families of these defendants? I have been sorry, and I am sorry for the bereavement of Mr. and Mrs. Franks, for those broken ties that cannot be healed. All I can hope and wish is that some good may come from it all. But as compared with the families of Leopold and Loeb, the Franks are to be envied – and everyone knows it.
Here is Leopold's father – and this boy was the pride of his life. He watched him and he cared for him, he worked for him; the boy was brilliant and accomplished. He educated him, and he thought that fame and position awaited him, as it should have awaited. It is a hard thing for a father to see his life's hopes crumble into dust.
And Loeb's the same. Here are the faithful uncle and brother, who have watched here day by day, while Dickie's father and his mother are too ill to stand this terrific strain, and shall be waiting for a message which means more to them than it can mean to you or me. Shall these be taken into account in this general bereavement?
The easy thing and the popular thing to do is to hang my clients. I know it. Men and women who do not think will applaud. The cruel and thoughtless will approve. It will be easy today; but in Chicago, and reaching out over the length and breadth of the land, more and more fathers and mothers, the humane, the kind and the hopeful, who are gaining an understanding and asking questions not only about these poor boys, but about their own – these will join in no acclaim at the death of my clients.
These would ask that the shedding of blood be stopped, and that the normal feelings of man resume their sway. Your Honor stands between the past and the future. You may hang these boys; you may hang them by the neck until they are dead. But in doing it you will turn your face toward the past. In doing it you are making it harder for every other boy who in ignorance and darkness must grope his way through the mazes which only childhood knows.
In doing it you will make it harder for unborn children. You may save them and make it easier for every child that sometime may stand where these boys stand. You will make it easier for every human being with an aspiration and a vision and a hope and a fate.
I am pleading for the future; I am pleading for a time when hatred and cruelty will not control the hearts of men. When we can learn by reason and judgment and understanding and faith that all life is worth saving, and that mercy is the highest attribute of man."
The judge was persuaded, but he explained in his ruling that his decision was based primarily on precedent and the youth of the accused. On the 10th. September 1924, he sentenced both Leopold and Loeb to life imprisonment for the murder, and an additional 99 years for the kidnapping. A little over a month later, Loeb's father died of heart failure.
Darrow's handling of the law as defense counsel has been criticized for hiding psychiatric expert testimony that conflicted with his polemical goals and for relying on an absolute denial of free will, one of the principles legitimizing all criminal punishment.
Prison and Loeb's Murder
Leopold and Loeb initially were held at Joliet Prison. Although they were kept apart as much as possible, the two managed to maintain their friendship.
Leopold was transferred to Stateville Penitentiary in 1925, and Loeb was later transferred there as well. Once reunited, the two expanded the prison school system, adding a high school and junior college curriculum.
On the 28th. January 1936, Loeb was attacked by fellow inmate James Day with a straight razor in a shower room; he died soon after in the prison hospital.
Day claimed that Loeb had attempted to sexually assault him, but he was unharmed, while Loeb sustained more than fifty wounds, including defensive wounds on his arms and hands. His throat had been slashed from behind.
News accounts suggested Loeb had propositioned Day, and though several prison officials including the Warden believed Loeb had been murdered, Day was found not guilty by a jury after a short trial in June, 1936.
The Ku Klux Klan
Also on that day, U.S. presidential candidate John W. Davis condemned the Ku Klux Klan by name in a speech in Sea Girt, New Jersey, reviving an issue that had badly split the Democratic Party at the National Convention.
Davis called on President Coolidge to do the same.
Agatha Christie
Also on the 22nd. August 1924, the Agatha Christie novel 'The Man in the Brown Suit' was published.
A Disturbance in the Reichstag
Also on that day, Communists in the Reichstag filibustered Chancellor Wilhelm Marx. They caused a loud disturbance of hoots and jeers when he tried to speak on the London conference ahead of a vote on the matter.
The session was suspended and police were called in, but no clause could be found by which to arrest those who were causing the disturbance, and the Reichstag adjourned for the day.
An ode to the psychological push-and-pull between warm and cool tones, where emotion and intellect visually collide.
"Yellow is the color of sunshine. It's associated with joy, happiness, intellect, and energy.
Yellow produces a warming effect, arouses cheerfulness, stimulates mental activity, and generates muscle energy. Yellow is often associated with food. Bright, pure yellow is an attention getter, which is the reason taxicabs are painted this color. When overused, yellow may have a disturbing effect; it is known that babies cry more in yellow rooms. Yellow is seen before other colors when placed against black; this combination is often used to issue a warning. In heraldry, yellow indicates honor and loyalty. Later the meaning of yellow was connected with cowardice.
Use yellow to evoke pleasant, cheerful feelings. You can choose yellow to promote children's products and items related to leisure. Yellow is very effective for attracting attention, so use it to highlight the most important elements of your design. Men usually perceive yellow as a very lighthearted, 'childish' color, so it is not recommended to use yellow when selling prestigious, expensive products to men – nobody will buy a yellow business suit or a yellow Mercedes. Yellow is an unstable and spontaneous color, so avoid using yellow if you want to suggest stability and safety. Light yellow tends to disappear into white, so it usually needs a dark color to highlight it. Shades of yellow are visually unappealing because they loose cheerfulness and become dingy.
Dull (dingy) yellow represents caution, decay, sickness, and jealousy.
Light yellow is associated with intellect, freshness, and joy."
Info quoted from www.color-wheel-pro.com/color-meaning.html
Oh and the shot was Not edited ^_^ only added the frame and the signature.
To Trivials' Hero... for being such a wonderful person... I Think that you somehow represent this color ^_____^
Have a nice day flickrers =D
You know when you have a great idea, but then you choose to ignore it and end up doing something like this instead? The original 'Me' is here. The more I look at this the more it freaks me out.
I have some proper photos coming soon. One is a flower.
Looks 'better' on black. Hmm.
Mourning over and due respect shown for the death of Betty Windsor and ahead of the coronation of her hereditary successor is as good a time as any to reflect on the Crown.
Putting aside the status of the Monarch of the (cough, cough) United Kingdom and the Realms, King Charles III has styled himself as: His Majesty Charles the Third, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of his other Realms and Territories, King, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith. Indeed, all of this is so archaic that The Firm still feels the need to Style old mate as Carolus in the long dead Latin — Chas or Chuck to we peasants!
Conflict of interest! Cast your mind back to Charles I of England. He lost his head over the appointment by God business. Have we learned SFA? George Santayana famously noted (sic) Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect and it is well to examine with your intellect whether to claim appointment by God then go to war in defence of the same deity isn't a bit of a problem. Logically if God falls, like the loss of ravens from the White Tower, then poof, so goes the monarchy.
I simply refuse to get into the silly arguments about the Koh-i-Noor and Cullinan baubles. As the property of others and theirs to give away to Victoria and her eldest son, title would seem to have been surrendered long ago. Of course, anyone might return a gift. It seems that history has not treated these stones well and they are diminished in their stature by the hands of man in their cutting. Sending back a used trinket ought to be seen as an insult!
Adopting Charles III as King of Australia is doubly problematic. Sure, the 17th and 18th century Acts relating to succession were patched up with a bit of race tape in 2013 to give the girls a go, but Australia is still constrained to have a Head of State descended from what is essentially a white family of former Germans who aren't Roman Catholics but must be members of the Anglican Church! Our own people, our first human population cannot, under our own laws, become the Head of State of their own country. Shame!!
So, here in the Treasury in the North Tower of the Uppsala Cathedral are reminders to maintain the chastity of our intellect. The crowns of King Johan III and his wife Queen Catherine for all their gold, garnets, sapphires, pearls and emeralds didn't save them from the human condition. We waste our talent and diminish our culture by slavish adherence to the superstition of regal superiority. Reflect on the Crown; give it a break!
Photo taken at non-profit organisation WOMEN in Hyderabad. www.womenhyd.org. The organisation works with poor girls and women in the low income neighbourhoods (slums) Aasif Nagar.
These headless beings bred by the Kaldane have no will or intellect of their own, but serve as useful puppet mounts.
I love his academic look - he looks like he belongs in the halls of Oxford.
image from motlc.wiesenthal.com/site/pp.asp?c=jmKYJeNVJrF&b=478527
the picture is also taken by my daughter...
and from the book "The Animal Mind" by James Gould and Carol Grant Could
"The concept of animal intelligence continues to hold our imagination today, as evidenced by the children's stories from Beatrix Potter to television's Lassie, but an increasing tendency in Western thought toward empirical evaluation has encouraged a more scientific consideration of the animal mind. Darwin wrote in the Descent of Man (1871) that the difference in mind between humans and the higher animals "certainly is one of degree and not one of a kind. We have seen that the senses and intuitions, the various emotions and faculties, such as love, memory, attention, curiosity, imitation, reason, and so on, of which man boasts, may be found in an incipient, or even sometimes in a well-developed condition in lower animals.....until very recently it has been anathema in the scientific world to suggest in print that intelligence of some sort, perhaps even self-awareness, might guide the routine and stereotyped behavior of many animals. As field research into the mechanisms of animal behavior has revealed many intricate but innate behavioral programs that, despite their sophistication, have no apparent intellectual component."
NOVEMBER "Niah Diamond Choker"
FABRIXQUARE "Justice Braids"
VERSOV "HABLOV_EYEWEAR"
GRAILED "Abzorb Trainers"
MAJESTY "Slouchy Socks"
FLAUNT "Ani Rings"
MEMOIRE "Var Bag Frais"
VEX "Ava Baggy Shirt yellow"
VEX "Lia Baggy Joggers"
NOVEMBER "Niah Diamond Choker"
FABRIXQUARE "Justice Braids"
VERSOV "HABLOV_EYEWEAR"
GRAILED "Abzorb Trainers"
MAJESTY "Slouchy Socks"
FLAUNT "Ani Rings"
MEMOIRE "Var Bag Frais"
VEX "Ava Baggy Shirt yellow"
VEX "Lia Baggy Joggers"
Sebastiano del Piombo (c1485-1547) - Portrait of a Lady, 1540s. May be Giulia Gonzaga, a countess famed for her intellect and beauty
"Our intellect is perfected and elevated by various lights" - a citation from St. Albert and a witty reference, it seems, to the windows (lights) of the church, namely, St Vincent Ferrer's Priory church in New York.
Photo by Fr. Lawrence Lew, O.P.
Monument by Thomas Banks with the sleeping figure of Penelope Boothby aged 5
"I was not in safety, neither had I rest, and the trouble came
To Penelope only child of Sir Brooke and Dame Susanna Boothby; Born April 11th 1785; Died March 12th 1791. She was in form and intellect most exquisite, the unfortunate parents ventured their all on this frail bark, and the wreck was total"
The inscription is in 4 different languages - English, Latin, French and Italian, all of which Penelope spoke.
Penelope was the only child of Sir Brooke Boothby of Ashbourne Hall and wife Susannah daughter of Robert Bristoe & Susanna Philipson
She was the grand daughter of Sir Brooke Boothby, 5th Bt.
Phoebe Hollins www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/ogg316
Her father Sir Brooke Boothby, 6th Baronet 1744 - 1824 was a linguist, translator, poet and landowner,
In the year of his marriage he leased Ashbourne Hall from his father, whose extravagance had forced him to live elsewhere whilst renting out the family seat and began its restoration funded by his wife's dowry. As well as renovating the structure, he remodeled the parkland, he bought rare plants and works of art Like his father before him, he was extravagant in the extreme. That weakness and his emotional self-indulgence were to be his nemeses.
His only daughter, Penelope, was born in the following April.
Sir Joshua Reynolds was a family friend and his painting "The Girl in the Mop Cap" is of Penelope when aged four. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/9J2z53
However on 19th March 1791, disaster struck when Penelope died at the age of five.
This permanently affected her father and he subsequently published a book of poetry, "Sorrows Sacred to the Memory of Penelope" and commissioned a painting by Henry Fuseli " The Apotheosis of Penelope Boothby" in 1792 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Fuseli_Henry_The_Apotheosis_Of... He also commissioned this monument.
His life continued to decline . He and his wife had separated soon after their daughter's funeral, and she returned to her parents' home in Hampshire , settling later in Dover. Her death was recorded under her maiden name.
As a result of his extravagance Boothby met with economic disaster which completely altered the course of his life. Ashbourne Hall was leased in c1814 - 1817 to Richard grandson of Sir Richard Arkwright. Boothby settled in diminished circumstances in Boulogne in 1815 and died there in 1824. He was buried near to Penelope with his parents and his sister Maria Elizabeth and other Boothby family members.
- Church of St Oswald, Ashbourne Derbyshire
~ Carl Jung
A smile starts on the lips,
A grin spreads to the eyes,
A chuckle comes from the belly;
But a good laugh bursts forth from the soul,
Overflows, and bubbles all around.
~ Carolyn Birmingham
Work and play are words used to describe the same thing under differing conditions.
~Mark Twain
St Oswald, Ashbourne, Derbyshire.
Carrara marble monument to Penelope Boothby (1785-1791).
Daughter of Sir Brooke Boothby, Baronet & his wife Susannah.
By Thomas Banks (1735-1805), 1793.
The inscription is in four different languages - English, Latin, French & Italian, all of which Penelope spoke.
"She was in form and intellect most exquisite. The unfortunate parents ventured their all on this frail bark and the wreck was total.”
Thomas Banks (1735-1805) was apprenticed to a London mason, but also spent time working alongside the sculptor Peter Scheemakers (1691-1781). He enrolled in the life classes held at the St Martin's Lane Academy, and later at the Royal Academy Schools. In 1772 he became the first sculptor to win the Royal Academy's three-year travelling stipend, and went with his wife to Rome, where he eventually spent seven years. He specialised in ideal works, most of which were executed in Rome for British patrons, although he continued to produce similar work after his return to London. He was made a Royal Academician in 1786. Banks was one of the most original British Neo-classical sculptors, who dedicated his work to the antique spirit rather than to the fashionable classical style alone.
For more information see:-
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penelope_Boothby
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Brooke_Boothby,_6th_Baronet
St Oswald’s Church, Ashbourne
Grade I Listed
Early foundation. Present church is mainly Early English from circa 1220 but a few remnants of earlier Norman work survive and a Saxon cross shaft (part) in the south aisle. The church is believed to stand on the site of a pagan holy well, now thought to be concealed beneath tyre crossing. The tower and spire circa 1330. The spire, which has been rebuilt several times, has a height of 215ft. Perpendicular additions and alterations circa 1520. The battlements to the chancel were added by Sir G G Scott in 1878 and the church was restored by Cottingham earlier in the C19. Some fine monuments from C14, of which the most famous is probably the figure of Penelope Boothby 1791, by Thomas Banks. Some mediaeval glass remains. In 1644, the church was fired on by Parliamentarians and the marks are still visible in the west wall.
Nos 38, 40 and 72, together with Pegg's Almshouses, Owlfield's Almhouses, The Mansion, the Summerhouse and the cobbled pavements form a group with the parish Church of St Oswald and the churchyard gate piers, gates and walls.
Listing NGR: SK1763146443
Great Gospel of John & Household of God
Do not in future build houses of prayer for Me but guest houses and refuges for the poor who can not pay you!
In the love of your poor brothers and sisters shall you be My true worshippers, and in such houses of prayer I shall be frequently among you, without you necessarily becoming aware of it; but in temples built for worshipping Me with the lips, as it has been till now, I shall henceforth dwell no more than man's intellect would in his little toe.
If however you have to awaken your hearts towards Me and enter upon the right humility in an exalted temple, then move outside into the temple of My Creations, and sun, moon and all the stars and the sea, the mountains and the trees and the birds of the air, as also the fish in the water and the countless flowers of the fields shall proclaim My glory to you!
Say, is not the tree more glorious than all the splendour of the temple at Jerusalem?! A tree is a pure work of God, it has its life and brings forth nourishing fruit. But what does the temple bring forth? I say unto you: nothing but arrogance, anger, envy, the most blatant jealousy and domineering; because it is not God's, but the vain work of man.
Verily, verily I say unto you all; he who shall honor, love and therewith worship Me by doing good to his brothers and sisters in My name shall have his everlasting reward in heaven; but he who henceforth honors Me with all kinds of ceremonies in a temple built especially for this shall also have his temporal reward from the temple! When however after the death of his flesh he shall come to Me and say: 'Lord, Lord, have mercy on me, your servant', I shall then say unto him: 'I do not know you; hence depart from Me and seek your reward with him who you served!' For this reason you too should henceforth have nothing more to do with any temple!
God also never taught the people to honor Him with lips and keep their hearts cold. But since Samuel prayed audibly in front of the people, equally so several of the prophets, and because David sang to God the Lord his psalms and Salmo his High Song, the people came to empty lip prayer and to cold sacrifices.
However, before God such prayers and sacrifices are repulsive! He who cannot pray in the heart should rather not pray at all, so as to not behave improper before God. God did not give feet, hands, eyes, ears and lips to man to pray vainly and vacuously, but only the heart!
For what use is the senseless bawling in the church, if thousands of poor and hungry brothers outside the church are not considered?!
Go and strengthen first the needy, feed the hungry, quench the thirsty, clothe the naked, comfort the sad, free the imprisoned and preach the gospel to the poor in spirit, then you will do endlessly better than to blare day and night in the churches with your lips, while your hearts were cold and unreceptive to your poor brothers!
Why would you build a separate house while you already have houses in which you live, wherein you also can come together in My name to discuss about My teaching and to tell about the experiences which everyone will certainly have when they live according to God's will?
It is also not necessary to introduce a certain feast day for that which you would call - like for instance the Pharisees call the Sabbath - 'the day of the Lord'. Because every day is a day of the Lord, and so on every day just as many good works can be done, because God does not look at a day and still less at a house that is build to honor and worship Him, but God looks only at the heart and the will of man. If the heart is pure and the will is good, and when these will make the whole man active, then this is already the true, real house of God's Spirit in man, and so his always good and active will according to the known will of God is the true and thus also the always real day of the Lord.
But if in a community you want to build a house out of love for Me, let this then be a school for your children, and give them teachers according to My teaching. You also can build a house for the poor, the sick and the disabled. Provide such a house of everything that is necessary to take care of the people who live there, then you always will be able to rejoice in My pleasure. All the rest and that which is in addition is evil and has, as already said, no value for God.
Do tell My children and all others, no matter of what religion: on earth there is only one church, and this is the love for Me in My Son. This love is the Holy Spirit within you, which reveals itself to you through My living Word. Thus I am in you; and your soul, whose heart is My dwelling place, is the sole Church on earth. In it alone there is eternal life, and it is the sole redeeming one! Or do you think I am present within the walls or in the ceremony or in prayer or veneration? Oh, no, there you are very much mistaken. There I am nowhere to be found, but only where there is love, there I am also!
Erected by a Roman consul Gaius Julius Aquila in honour of his father. It was built in AD 114-117 and used an ingenious method of humidity control. Air channels ran behind the niches where precious rolled manuscripts were stored. The library was damaged first by the Goths and then by an earthquake in 1000. The statues occupying the niches in the front are Sophia (wisdom),Arete (virtue), Ennoia (intellect) and Episteme (knowledge)
Syme recklessly boasts his intellect of party policy under the gaze of a telescreen - "DOUBLEPLUS DUMB"
www.george-orwell.org/1984/4.html
'Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it. Every concept that can ever be needed, will be expressed by exactly one word, with its meaning rigidly defined and all its subsidiary meanings rubbed out and forgotten. Already, in the Eleventh Edition, we're not far from that point. But the process will still be continuing long after you and I are dead. Every year fewer and fewer words, and the range of consciousness always a little smaller. Even now, of course, there's no reason or excuse for committing thoughtcrime. It's merely a question of self-discipline, reality-control. But in the end there won't be any need even for that. The Revolution will be complete when the language is perfect. Newspeak is Ingsoc and Ingsoc is Newspeak,' he added with a sort of mystical satisfaction. 'Has it ever occurred to you, Winston, that by the year 2050, at the very latest, not a single human being will be alive who could understand such a conversation as we are having now?'
'Except-' began Winston doubtfully, and he stopped.
It had been on the tip of his tongue to say 'Except the proles,' but he checked himself, not feeling fully certain that this remark was not in some way unorthodox. Syme, however, had divined what he was about to say.
'The proles are not human beings,' he said carelessly. 'By 2050 earlier, probably -- all real knowledge of Oldspeak will have disappeared. The whole literature of the past will have been destroyed. Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, Byron -- they'll exist only in Newspeak versions, not merely changed into something different, but actually changed into something contradictory of what they used to be. Even the literature of the Party will change. Even the slogans will change. How could you have a slogan like "freedom is slavery" when the concept of freedom has been abolished? The whole climate of thought will be different. In fact there will be no thought, as we understand it now. Orthodoxy means not thinking -- not needing to think. Orthodoxy is unconsciousness.'
One of these days, thought Winston with sudden deep conviction, Syme will be vaporized. He is too intelligent. He sees too clearly and speaks too plainly. The Party does not like such people. One day he will disappear. It is written in his face.
GEORGE ORWELL
La Paramārtha-śūnyatā, ou « Vacuité de l'Ultime », touche au sommet de la réalisation. Après avoir déconstruit le sujet (l'interne) et l'objet (l'externe), cette étape s'attaque à ce que nous considérons comme la Vérité Absolue elle-même.
C’est sans doute la forme de vacuité la plus vertigineuse, car elle ne laisse aucun refuge à l'intellect.
1. Qu'est-ce que le "Paramārtha" ?
En sanskrit, Paramārtha se compose de Parama (suprême, ultime) et Artha (objet, sens, vérité). C'est la réalité telle qu'elle est vue par l'esprit d'un être éveillé, au-delà des apparences trompeuses du monde conventionnel (Samvriti).
Dans de nombreuses traditions, on pourrait être tenté de diviniser cette « Vérité Ultime » ou d'en faire une substance métaphysique (comme un Dieu ou un Absolu solide). La Paramārtha-śūnyatā vient briser cette ultime idole.
2. Le sens philosophique : L'Absolu n'est pas une chose
Cette vacuité nous enseigne trois points fondamentaux :
* Le Nirvana est vide : Même l'état de libération n'est pas une "chose" que l'on possède ou un lieu où l'on va. S'il était une entité solide et non-vide, il serait limité et ne pourrait pas être atteint.
* L'ineffabilité : La Vérité Ultime est "vide" car elle est au-delà de tout concept, de tout mot et de toute saisie. Dès que l'on nomme l'Absolu, on en fait un objet de pensée, et donc une vérité conventionnelle.
* L'absence de hiérarchie réelle : Ultimement, il n'y a pas de différence de "nature" entre le monde ordinaire et l'absolu. Les deux sont également vides de nature propre.
3. L'impact pratique : Le saut dans le sans-appui
Méditer sur la Paramārtha-śūnyatā, c'est refuser de se construire un "nid" spirituel. C'est comprendre que même le chemin vers l'éveil est un radeau que l'on doit laisser derrière soi. Cela mène à une liberté radicale où l'esprit ne s'appuie plus sur rien, pas même sur l'idée de "vérité".
Résonance avec notre Pax-Urale : Lignifiante
C'est ici que notre profil atteint sa pleine maturité spirituelle. La lignification évoque l'aboutissement, la forme finale et robuste.
* Le Bois Absolu : Dans notre processus de croissance, la Paramārtha-śūnyatā est le moment où vous réalisez que la "finalité" de votre structure (le bois parfait) est elle-même une illusion.
* La Solidité Transcendée : Votre force n'est plus une "chose" que vous protégez. Votre structure lignifiée devient un "Monument de Vide". C'est une présence imposante, inébranlable et majestueuse, mais qui, lorsqu'on tente de l'analyser au niveau ultime, se révèle être pure lumière et pur espace.
* L'Autorité Silencieuse : En tant que Lignifiante, vous incarnez une solidité qui ne s'explique pas, car elle ne repose sur aucune vérité conceptuelle. C'est la force du chêne qui n'a pas besoin de justifier son existence.
« La Vérité Ultime est comme un arbre de bois précieux : sa nature est de n'avoir aucune nature. Sa force est de n'avoir aucun centre. »
PAX Urale
~ Some people think only intellect counts: knowing how to solve problems, knowing how to get by, knowing how to identify an advantage and seize it. But the functions of intellect are insufficient without courage, love, friendship, compassion and empathy. ~
- Dean Koontz
~ The great gift of human beings is that we have the power of empathy. ~
- Meryl Streep
There are three parts in this body. Outer body, Inner action and Pure soul. Outer body is physical part that we see. Inner action, that is going on inside us and you are the knower – Pure Soul. In Inner action, there are four parts – mind, intellect, ego and Chit. Only after decision is taken in inner part, it automatically comes in outer action. Mind shows thoughts in form of pamplet which remains inside the body. Chit – means visualization, It goes outside the body and can see the place, things, people etc. Intellect, takes the decision based on which ego will sign like a President. After all this outer action takes place. Pure Soul is the knower of what happens.
To know more please click on:-
English: www.dadabhagwan.org/path-to-happiness/spiritual-science/k...
Gujarati: www.dadabhagwan.in/path-to-happiness/spiritual-science/kn...
Featured Image from Swayam Jyotish Photobook
Life itself is characterized by duality, by teaming opposites. The myths of Shiva, however, ultimately point to reconciling harmony that exists beyond our ordinary vision. By widening one’s gaze to encompass life as a whole, life becomes a dance between extremes – a playful acceptance, an honoring, and a celebration.
ARTIST STATEMENT
The light from this container of photographs is non-dual from the innate light within each one of us. So too is physical light reflected in a jar of water or subtle light projected from the Chitta (mind-heart) in dream state. At its best the camera is a simple tool to transfer light through a lens recorded by a censor. At its root, consciousness is all-pervading and who we are. Consciousness, the Light of lights, proceeds from us and lends itself into the moment. The practice of Vichar (self-inquiry) reminds us of that same light appearing as the Jiva (individual-soul) and leads us to the revelation of Atman (universal-soul) and "Who Am I?" With that realization Nkosi Sri Govindaji approaches India with complete adoration and awareness of the Absolute Self in all, Brahman
Leica M11 / Leica 21mm f 3.4 Super Elmar ASPH
Nkosi.artiste@gmail.com
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Chance Nkosi Gomez known initiated by H.H Swami Jyotirmayanda as Sri Govinda walks an integral yogic path in which photography is the primary creative field of expression. The medium was introduced during sophomore year of high school by educator Dr. Devin Marsh of Robert Morgan Educational Center. Coming into alignment with light, its nature and articulating the camera was the focus during that time. Thereafter while completing a Photographic Technology Degree, the realization of what made an image “striking” came to the foreground of the inner dialogue. These college years brought forth major absorption and reflection as an apprentice to photographer and educator Tony A. Chirinos of Miami Dade College. The process of working towards a singular idea of interest and thus building a series became the heading from here on while the camera aided in cultivating an adherence to the present moment. The viewfinder resembles a doorway to the unified field of consciousness in which line, shape, form, color, value, texture all dissolve. It is here that the yogi is reminded of sat-chit-ananda (the supreme reality as all-pervading; pure consciousness). As of May 2024 Govinda has completed his 300hr yoga teacher training program at Sattva Yoga Academy studying from Master Yogi Anand Mehrotra in Rishikesh, India, Himalayas. This has strengthened his personal Sadhana and allows one to carry and share ancient Vedic Technology leading others in ultimately directing their intellect to bloom into intuition. As awareness and self-realization grows so does the imagery that is all at once divine in the mastery of capturing and controlling light. Over the last seven years he has self-published six photographic books, Follow me i’ll be right behind you (2017), Sonata - Minimal Study (2018), Birds Singing Lies (2018), Rwanda (2019), Where does the body begin? (2019) & Swayam Jyotis (2023). Currently, Govinda is employed at the Leica Store Miami as a camera specialist and starting his journey as a practitioner of yoga ॐ
GINSENG
Health Benefits
• Increased physical and mental endurance.
• Helps the body adjust to stressful condition.
• Increases energy
• Normalize body functions.
BACOPA
Health Benefits
• Improves intellect, consciousness and mental acuity.
• Calms the mind and promotes relaxation – increase protein synthesis and activity in brain cells.
• Improves memory, mental clarity and longevity.
• Decreases anxiety, restlessness and senility.
• Most commonly used to improve mental alertness and enhance learning and academic performance.
GINKGO BILOBA
Health Benefits
• For cerebral vascular insufficiency, vertigo, headaches, tinnitus, asthma, migraine and ischemia.
• Improves mental performance and brain function.
• Senility, memory loss, dementia and Alzheimer’s diseases.
• Peripheral vascular diseases, numbness and tingling.
TAURINE
Health Benefits
• It is vital for the transport and proper utilization of Sodium, Potassium, Calcium and Magnesium in and out of the body’s cell.
• Taurine may stabilize the myelin sheath of neurons or nerve cells (are specialized cells that initiate and transmit nerve impulses) to speed up propagation of impulses.
• Plays a role in memory by increasing histamine and acetylcholine levels in the brain.
• May help to protect the brain from the toxic effects of hypoxia.
• Taurine may improve mood and learning ability by inhibiting lead-induced impairment.
GREEN TEA
Health Benefits
• Used primary for its free radical fighting capabilities.
• Helps block the cancer promoting actions of carcinogen,
ultra-violet light and metastasis.
Minto Lodge No. 90 Perfect Ashlar.
Masonic Perfect Ashlar.
The Latin assis was a board or plank; in the diminutive form, assula, it meant a small board, like a shingle, or a chip. In this con-nection it is interesting to note that our "axle" and' "axis" were derived from it. In early English this became asheler and was used to denote a stone in the rough as it came from the quarries. The Operative Masons called such a stone a "rough ashlar," and when it had been shaped and finished for its place in the wall they called it a "perfect ashlar." An Apprentice is a rough ashlar, because unfinished, whereas a Master Mason is a perfect ashlar, because he has been shaped for his place in the organization of the Craft.
The publication of a number of Minute Books of old Lodges since it was written calls for a revision of the paragraph on ASHLAR, on page 107. In one of his memoranda on the building of St. Paul s, Sir Christopher Wren shows by the context that as the word was there and then used an ashlar was a stone, ready-dressed from the quarries (costing about $5.00 in our money), for use in walls ; and that a "perpend asheler" was one with polished ends each of which would lie in a surface of the wall ; in that case a "rough" ashlar was not a formless mass of rock, but was a stone ready for use, no surface of which would appear in the building walls; it was unfinished in the sense of unpolished. In other records, of which only a few have been found, a "perpend" ashlar was of stone cut with a key in it so as to interlock with a second stone cut correspondingly.
It is doubtful if the Symbolic Ashlars were widely used among the earliest Lodges; on the other hand they are mentioned in Lodge inventories often enough to make it certain that at least a few of the old Lodges used them ; and since records were so meagerly kept it is possible that their use may have been more common than has been believed. On April 11, 1754, Old Dundee Lodge in Wapping, London, "Resolved that A New Perpend Ashlar Inlaid with Devices of Masonry Valued at £2 12s. 6d. be purchased. " The word ''new'' proves that the Lodge had used an Ashlar before 1754, perhaps for many years before; the word "devices" duggests long years of symbolic use.
It is obvious that the Ashlars as referred to in the above were not like our own Perfect and Imperfect Ashlars. It is certain that our use of them did not originate in America ; there are no known data to show when or where they originated, but it is reasonable to suppose that Webb received them from Preston, or else from English Brethren in person who knew the Work in Preston's period. Operative Masons doubtless used the word in more than one sense, depending on time and place ; and no rule can be based on their Practice.
The Speculative Masons after 1717, as shown above, must have used "Perfect Ashlar" in the sense of "Perpend Ashlar"; nevertheless the general purpose of the symbolism has been the same throughout - a reminder to the Candidate that he is to think of himself as if he were a building stone and that he will be expected to polish himself in manners and character in order to find a place in the finished Work of Masonry. The contrast between the Rough Ashlar and the Perfect Ashlar is not as between one man and another man, thereby generating a snobbish sense of superiority; but as between what a man is at one stage of his own self-development and what he is at another stage.
In Sir Christopher Wren's use of "ashlar" (he was member of Lodge of Antiquity) the stone had a dimension of 1 x 1 x 2 feet; and many building records, some of them very old, mention similar dimensions; certainly, the "perpend" or "perfect" ashlar almost never was a cube, because there are few places in a wall where a cube will serve. Because in our own symbolism the Perfect Ashlar is a cube, a number of commentators on symbolism have drawn out of it pages of speculation on the properties of the cube, and on esoteric meanings they believe those properties to possess; the weight possessed by those theorizing is proportionate to the knowledge and intelligence of the commentator; but in any event these cubic interpretations do not have the authority of Masonic history behind them.
NOTE: During the many years of building and re-building at Westminster Abbey the clerk of the works kept a detailed account of money expended, money received, wages, etc. These records, still in existence, are called Fabric Rolls. In the Fabric Roll for 1253 the word "asselers" occurs many times, and means dressed stones, or ashlars. A "perpens" or "parpens," or "perpent-stone" was "a through stone," presumably because it was so cut that each end was flush with a face of the wall. It proves that "perpend ashlar" was not a "perfect ashlar" in the present sense of being a cube.
- Source: Mackey's Encyclopedia of Freemasonry
This Masonic Perfect Ashlar was presented to the Barton Lodge by W.Bro. C. H. Webster in 5846.
Rough and Perfect Ashlar
A rough and perfect ashlar are stones which symbolize Man's moral and spiritual life.
Cutting stone to uniform shapes and sizes requires the skill and experience of a true craftsman with many years of experience.
This is why, historically, only large edifices (buildings) were made of ashlars (rather than brick or wood), due to the necessity (and difficulty) of assembling the many skilled craftsman needed to complete the many subsets of knowledge such as how to build a stone archway, how to lay foundation stone, and how to lay stone, one atop another to great heights...not to mention the artisans who sculpted the stones into ornamental shapes.
In days of old, apprentice masons cut and raised the Rough Ashlars from the stone quarry under the supervision of more experienced craftsman, called Fellowcrafts.
The work was accomplished under the watchful eye of the Master masons of the craft...those who had proved their ability to make their Master's piece to the satisfaction of their superiors.
In Freemasonry, there are 2 forms of ashlars.
Rough Ashlar
In operative Freemasonry, the rough ashlar represents a rough, unprepared or undressed stone. In speculative Freemasonry, a rough ashlar is an allegory to the uninitiated Freemason prior to his discovering enlightenment.
Perfect Ashlar
Operatively, the Perfect ashlar represents the dressed stone (after it has been made uniform and smoothed) by use of the working tools, the common gavel, (mallet) and chisel. (The chisel may be found in English Freemasonry, but is not used in the United States as a Freemason symbol.)
Only after the stone has been dressed by an experienced stonemason, can it be suitable to be placed into the architectural structure or building.
Speculatively, a Perfect Ashlar is an allegory to a Freemason who, through Masonic education, works to achieve an upstanding life and diligently strives to obtain enlightenment.
Rough and Perfect Ashlars
In the Fellowcraft Degree, we see the use of the Rough and Perfect Ashlars. The lesson to be learned is that by means of education and the acquirement of knowledge, a man improves the state of his spiritual and moral being.
Like man, each Rough Ashlar begins as an imperfect stone. With education, cultivation and brotherly love, man is shaped into a being which has been tried by the square of virtue and encircled by the compasses of his boundaries, given to us by our Creator.
Rough and Perfect Ashlar: Fitted For The Builder's Use
In ancient times, quarried stone which could be easily shaped into desired configurations, was called "freestone". Typical freestones are limestone and sandstone.
Then, as now, only after refining and smoothing these rough stones into their desired shape, were the stonemasons able to "fit them for the builder's use".
In the Fellowcraft degree, the Rough Ashlar represents a man's unrefined state and his need for improvement. He learns that the goal of being a better man includes spirituality of thought and striving for perfection of conduct. Via duties, expectations and obligations, he is charged to work toward these goals of self improvement.
As the Freemason "smoothes" his rough edges, internally and externally; he becomes a better man and, therefore, a better Freemason.
Once a man has perfected his ashlar to the best of his ability,... as Brothers to all mankind, it is his duty to help others become better men and better Freemasons.
Rough and Perfect Ashlar - The Potential For Change
All rough ashlars must have within them the potential to be made into a perfect ashlar.
The stone must be made of sound material and have a minimum of character flaws which may cause it to weaken the edifice (building). It must be capable of being worked into a perfect stone. This is why candidates for the degrees are asked many questions as to their qualifications and character about why they wish to become Freemasons.
The candidate must have the potential to both serve and support the Fraternity. He must be carefully inspected, just as each Rough Ashlar is inspected for quality in order to be able to "fit" him into Freemasonry's tenets and goals, which are compatible to God's laws.
An imperfect stone may be made perfect, however major flaws are difficult to overcome and when assembled into a structure, the entire structure can be weakened from its improper use. This is as true of men as it is of stones.
Rough and Perfect Ashlar - States of Metamorphose
Freemasonry has a glorious history. Flawed ashlars can bring negative feelings and reproach upon the Fraternity from non-Freemasons in the outside world and therefore, can have no place within its walls.
...That said,...let us not forget that perfect ashlars are not found lying about the stone quarry without benefit of their having been hammered, chiseled and polished into such a state of being.
It also holds true that "perfect" men are also such an anomaly without the benefit of brotherly love, guidance and light. There are very few Freemasons who have not been in both the rough and perfect ashlar state-of-being at some point in their lives.
Freemason Duties For the Future of the Craft
1. Freemasons must give serious consideration to our personal responsibility to educate other Brothers toward their self improvement.
Like the Good Samaritan in the Holy Books; it is in the giving and assistance to others in which you will find the true "jewels" of enlightenment. True Master Masons not only exemplify the tenets of the craft, but they teach what they learn.
2. Lodges should carefully judge the potential of each candidate, weighing both their character and their potential for change. For more information as to how to properly perform this duty, see my page Masonic Investigation Committee.
3. Each Freemason is charged to extend the hand of brotherly love and affection to help new Freemasons become better men and strive to live on the square, stand upright with the plumb and take their true place as a man who would make his Creator (the Almighty), proud of him.
The lesson of the Rough and Perfect Ashlar applies to all men who are worthy,...who have a heartfelt wish to go from ignorance to knowledge,...from darkness to light...and from death to life.
The following poem, written by Mary Brooks Picken, entitled, "Thimblefuls of Friendliness" was written in 1924, and, perhaps says it, best.
"Thimblefuls of Friendliness"
"Isn't it strange that Princes and Kings
And clowns that caper in sawdust rings,
And just plain folks like you and me,
Are builders for Eternity?
To each is given a bag of tools,
A shapeless mass and a book of rules,
And each must make ere life is flown,
A stumbling block, or a stepping stone.
So,...it's up to you. What will YOU decide to build with YOUR working tools?
The Ashlars - Author Unknown
We are told that the Ashlars lie open in the lodge for the brethren to moralize on. Did you ever see a brother contemplating the Ashlars and trying to derive some moral benefit from them? For the most part they are quickly referred to and just as quickly forgotten. The Ashlar is the freestone as it comes from the quarry. The Rough Ashlar is the stone in its rude and natural state and is emblematic of man in his natural state – ignorant, uncultivated and vicious. But when education has exerted it’s wholesome influence in expanding his intellect, restraining his passions and purifying his life, he then is represented by the Perfect Ashlar which, under the skillful hands of workman, has been smoothed and squared and fitted for its place in the building.
However, you will observe that the Rough Ashlar in a Masonic Lodge is not in its rude or natural state. It has been squared in a fashion, partially smoothed and has apparent strength and solidarity. It possesses all the qualities that could make it a perfect stone for use in the construction of the Temple, but it needs the hands and skill of the perfect Craftsman to bring about that result. It represents the candidate for membership in a Masonic Lodge. Such an applicant is not in his rude or natural state, neither ignorant, uncultivated nor vicious.
Masonry does not accept men of such qualifications. The applicant by education and perseverance has fitted himself as a respectable man in his community, assuming full responsibility as a citizen, a churchman and a member of his family. There is a vast number of men in every community possessing such qualifications who are not members of a Masonic Lodge, and may never have the desire to associate themselves with the Ancient Craft.
A man judges Masonry by the actions and manner of living of those he knows are members of the Order, but knows little or nothing of its teachings or objectives in the building of character. In that sense, he is in the crude state of the rough Ashlar, possessing all the qualities or perfect material, but lacking the polish that comes from a continued study and practice of the great teachings of Masonry.
Membership in a lodge does not make a man a Mason. He must apply his abilities to improving all in him that falls short of that high standard set by Masonry in character and citizen building. If he is satisfied with being a Master Mason in name only, he loses the benefits of further advancement and improvement offered by membership in the Order. In other words, he falls far short of anything that might be termed the Perfect Ashlar.
The Perfect Ashlar is for the more expert Craftsman to try and adjust his jewels on. In ancient times, with crude tools that would not even be used in this age, workmen of great skill and experience produced material for the construction of the Temple having such perfection that each piece fitted perfectly into its place without adjustment or correction. Time was not one of the essential factors; perfection was the goal.
To keep this state of perfection in absolute balance, a standard must have been set whereby the workmen could constantly test their tools to know that continued wear and use had not changed the measurements; even in the slightest degree. Did they have a Perfect Ashlar on which to make such a test?
We are told that the Perfect Ashlar is for the more expert workmen to “try” and adjust their tools on. In Masonry, we are the workmen, whether we be active or inactive, workers or drones. What are our “jewels”, our most prized possession? If we have absorbed any of the teachings Masonry, the building of character and a Christian way of life are two of the many jewels that should constantly be before us. And in the building of that state of perfection to which we attain, what Perfect Ashlar have we that we might go to and “try” the tools with which we have been working, to know that they are still of fine quality and in perfect condition for the job that lies before us.
In every Masonic Lodge there rests on the Altar in the center of the room the V.O.T.S.L. It is the solid foundation upon which Masonry in our lives is built. It never changes. Civilizations may come and go, but the Book of Books remains the same, adaptable to all conditions and manner of men, in good times and bad, in peace or war, a guide for mankind.
How often do we consult this Guide to try and adjust the jewels which are ours and which may need to be altered to get them back to that state of perfection which we as Masons should endeavor at all times to hold as our standard way of life? I am afraid that in this busy world of today, we neglect this practice. Therefore, as we think of the Ashlars and try to do a little moralizing, let us forget, even for a brief period, the material things in our lives, and direct our thoughts to the more important duty of contemplating our own defects and shortcomings, and adjusting our way of life and bringing it more in harmony with that standard given us by the Great Creator in the V.O.T.S.L.
The Ashlars are not just two pieces of stone. They represent what we have been and what we hope to be. It is up to each individual Mason to pass his own judgment on himself and to adjust his jewels accordingly, so that when the time comes and he lays down his tools and makes the final journey to the Grand Lodge Above, he may leave behind a reputation as a wise counselor, a pillar of strength and stability, a Perfect Ashlar on which younger Masons may test the correctness and value of their own contribution to the Masonic order.
Justice (Tarot card)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Justice (XI)
Justice is a Major Arcana Tarot card, numbered either XI or VIII, depending on the deck. This card is used in game playing as well as in divination.
Description
A. E. Waite was a key figure in the development of modern Tarot interpretations. However, not all interpretations follow his theology. Please remember that all Tarot decks used for divination are interpreted up to personal experience and standards.
Some frequent keywords are:
* Impartiality ----- Distance ----- Coldness ----- Justice
* Objective mind----- Criticism ----- Being clever ----- Insensitivity
* Decision ----- Intellect ----- Analysis ----- Realism ----- Severity
* Responsibility ----- Rationality ----- Clear vision ----- Logic and reason
this is either Richard Cosmo Anderson or Piper Violet Anderson, the next generation of Holistic Forge Works managerial staff.
note from cousin Robin: "The first Anderson Baby Pictures! Very cute kid already, and first on his/her generation. By the way, regarding "Cosmo", there was a Cosum Bartlett on your Mom's Dad's (Grandpa RB's Mother's family) side that studied law at Dartmouth, then founded a chain of newspapers across the southeast, helped write the Florida Constitution, and helped established Florida as a state in the USA. His son's were newspaper editors and one became Governor of California, Washington Bartlett. Thought you might like a little family history lesson. Congrats you two."
The Bramian race using their cool and alien like intellect designed the Dome’s stabilizing thrusters to run completely silent despite their massive power. The original prototypes were conceived using the Bramian techniques of mental projection and analysis.
A complete breakthrough in thruster design, these bad boys can output enough force to relocate the Thunderdome in case of emergency or fanboy wrath.
Monument by Thomas Banks with the sleeping figure of Penelope Boothby aged 5
"I was not in safety, neither had I rest, and the trouble came
To Penelope only child of Sir Brooke and Dame Susanna Boothby; Born April 11th 1785; Died March 12th 1791. She was in form and intellect most exquisite, the unfortunate parents ventured their all on this frail bark, and the wreck was total"
The inscription is in 4 different languages - English, Latin, French and Italian, all of which Penelope spoke.
Penelope was the only child of Sir Brooke Boothby of Ashbourne Hall and wife Susannah daughter of Robert Bristoe & Susanna Philipson
She was the grand daughter of Sir Brooke Boothby, 5th Bt.
Phoebe Hollins www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/ogg316
Her father Sir Brooke Boothby, 6th Baronet 1744 - 1824 was a linguist, translator, poet and landowner,
In the year of his marriage he leased Ashbourne Hall from his father, whose extravagance had forced him to live elsewhere whilst renting out the family seat and began its restoration funded by his wife's dowry. As well as renovating the structure, he remodeled the parkland, he bought rare plants and works of art Like his father before him, he was extravagant in the extreme. That weakness and his emotional self-indulgence were to be his nemeses.
His only daughter, Penelope, was born in the following April.
Sir Joshua Reynolds was a family friend and his painting "The Girl in the Mop Cap" is of Penelope when aged four. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/9J2z53
However on 19th March 1791, disaster struck when Penelope died at the age of five.
This permanently affected her father and he subsequently published a book of poetry, "Sorrows Sacred to the Memory of Penelope" and commissioned a painting by Henry Fuseli " The Apotheosis of Penelope Boothby" in 1792 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Fuseli_Henry_The_Apotheosis_Of... He also commissioned this monument.
His life continued to decline . He and his wife had separated soon after their daughter's funeral, and she returned to her parents' home in Hampshire , settling later in Dover. Her death was recorded under her maiden name.
As a result of his extravagance Boothby met with economic disaster which completely altered the course of his life. Ashbourne Hall was leased in c1814 - 1817 to Richard grandson of Sir Richard Arkwright. Boothby settled in diminished circumstances in Boulogne in 1815 and died there in 1824. He was buried near to Penelope with his parents and his sister Maria Elizabeth and other Boothby family members.
- Church of St Oswald, Ashbourne Derbyshire
[an] intellect...cool and unsympathetic, regarded this pooch with envious eyes, and slowly and surely drew her plans
John Higgins, DG Intellect Trade Association, visiting the ESA stand, 19 July 2010, Farnborough Airshow
“In the morning I bathe my intellect in the stupendous and cosmogonal philosophy of the Bhagavad gita, since whose composition years of the gods have elapsed, and in comparison with which our modern world and its literature seem puny and trivial; and I doubt if that philosophy is not to be referred to a previous state of existence, so remote is its sublimity from our conceptions.
I lay down the book and go to my well for water, and lo! there I meet the servant of the Bramin, priest of Brahma and Vishnu and Indra, who still sits in his temple on the Ganges reading the Vedas, or dwells at the root of a tree with his crust and water jug. I meet his servant come to draw water for his master, and our buckets as it were grate together in the same well. The pure Walden water is mingled with the sacred water of the Ganges.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden: Or, Life in the Woods