Infinity Imagined A stereo image of Jupiter’s atmosphere, derived from data collected by the Juno spacecraft during perijove 3. These images, taken at different point in the orbit, can be combined to reveal the 3D structure and relief of clouds in the southern atmosphere. To see the image in 3D, relax the eyes until the white circles overlap, then look at the image. Image source: NASA Processing: James Tyrwhitt-Drake (Source: missionjuno.swri.edu) Baba Yaga Andreas Johns identifies Baba Yaga as "one of the most memorable and distinctive figures in eastern European folklore," and observes that she is "enigmatic" and often exhibits "striking ambiguity." Johns summarizes Baba Yaga as a "a many-faceted figure, capable of inspiring researchers to see her as a Cloud, Moon, Death, Winter, Snake, Bird, Pelican or Earth Goddess, totemic matriarchal ancestress, female initiator, phallic mother, or archetypal image". Etymology[edit] Variations of the name Baba Yaga are found in the languages of the Eastern Slavic peoples. The first element, baba, is transparently a babble word. In Old Russian, baba may mean 'midwife', 'sorceress', or 'fortune teller'. These associations have led to variety of theories on the figure of Baba Yaga, though the presence of the element baba may have simply been taken as its primary meaning of 'grandmother' or 'old woman'. Folklore[edit] The heroine Vasilisa outside of the hut of Baba Yaga as depicted by Ivan Bilibin (1902)
Wicca This pentacle, worn as a pendant, depicts a pentagram, or five-pointed star, used as a symbol of Wicca by many adherents. Wicca is a diverse religion with no central authority or figure defining it. It is divided into various lineages and denominations, referred to as traditions, each with its own organisational structure and level of centralisation. Terminology[edit] Application of the word Wicca has given rise to "a great deal of disagreement and infighting". Beliefs[edit] Beliefs vary markedly between different traditions and individual practitioners. Theology[edit] Altar statues of the Horned God and Mother Goddess crafted by Bel Bucca and owned by the "Mother of Wicca", Doreen Valiente Duotheism[edit] The God and the Goddess[edit] For most Wiccans, the God and Goddess are seen as complementary polarities in the universe that balance one another out, and in this manner they have been compared to the concept of yin and yang found in Taoism. Pantheism, polytheism and animism[edit]
Zhangzhung Zhangzhung (Tibetan: ཞང་ཞུང་ ; Tibetan pronunciation: [ɕaŋɕuŋ]; Chinese: 象雄; Chinese pinyin : Xiàngxióng) was an ancient culture and kingdom of western and northwestern Tibet, which pre-dates the culture of Tibetan Buddhism in Tibet. Zhangzhung culture is associated with the Bon religion, which in turn, has influenced the philosophies and practices of Tibetan Buddhism. Zhangzhung people are mentioned frequently in ancient Tibetan texts as the original rulers of central and western Tibet. Only in the last two decades have archaeologists been given access to do archaeological work in the areas once ruled by the Zhangzhung. Recently, a tentative match has been proposed between the Zhangzhung and an Iron Age culture now being uncovered on the Changtang plateau of northwestern Tibet. §Extent of the Zhang Zhung kingdoms[edit] Tradition has it that Zhang Zhung consisted "of three different regions: sGob-ba, the outer; Phug-pa, the inner; and Bar-ba, the middle. §History of the Zhangzhung[edit]
Psychopomp In Jungian psychology, the psychopomp is a mediator between the unconscious and conscious realms. It is symbolically personified in dreams as a wise man or woman, or sometimes as a helpful animal. In many cultures, the shaman also fulfills the role of the psychopomp. By region[edit] Africa[edit] Dead ancestors Egypt[edit] Nigeria[edit] Americas[edit] Aztec[edit] Xolotl Cahuilla[edit] Muut Inuit[edit] Mayan[edit] Ixtab United States[edit] Asia[edit] China[edit] Japan[edit] Shinigami Mesopotamia[edit] Namtar Persia[edit] Mithra Philippines[edit] Europe[edit] Anglo-Saxon[edit] Wōden Celtic[edit] Etruscan[edit] Greek[edit] Norse[edit] Roman[edit] Slavic[edit] Spanish[edit] Santa Compaña Welsh[edit] Gwyn ap Nudd Polynesia[edit] Aumakua By religion[edit] Buddhism[edit] Christianity[edit] Hinduism[edit] Islam[edit] Judaism[edit] Vodun[edit] Zoroastrianism[edit] See also[edit] References[edit] Further reading[edit] External links[edit] Psychopomps.org
List of legendary creatures This is a list of legendary creatures from various historical mythologies. Entries include species of legendary creature and unique creatures, but not individuals of a particular species. A[edit] B[edit] C[edit] D[edit] E[edit] F[edit] G[edit] H[edit] I[edit] J[edit] K[edit] L[edit] M[edit] N[edit] O[edit] P[edit] Q[edit] R[edit] S[edit] T[edit] U[edit] V[edit] W[edit] X[edit] Y[edit] Z[edit] See also[edit] Icelandic magical staves Icelandic magical staves (sigils) are symbols called Galdrastafur in Icelandic, and are credited with magical effect preserved in various grimoires dating from the 17th century and later.[1] According to the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft, the effects credited to most of the staves were very relevant to the average Icelanders of the time, who were mostly subsistence farmers and had to deal with harsh climatic conditions.[1] Table of magical staves[edit] Font[edit] See also[edit] References[edit] ^ Jump up to: a b "Staves or magical signs"Jump up ^ Lbs 4375 8vo, Iceland, 1900-1949 in the National Library in ReykjavíkJump up ^ From a 17th-century grimoire, in the Antikvarisk-Topografiska Arkivet in Stockholm.Jump up ^ [1] Huld Manuscript ÍB 383 4] in the National Library in ReykjavíkJump up ^ From a 19th-century manuscript, lbs 4375 8vo, in the National Library in Reykjavík.Jump up ^ External links[edit]
Kalachakra The Kalachakra (Sanskrit: कालचक्र Kālacakra, Tibetan: དུས་ཀྱི་འཁོར་ལོ།, Wylie: dus kyi 'khor lo; Mongolian: Цогт Цагийн Хүрдэн Tsogt Tsagiin Hurden; Chinese: 時輪) is a term used in Vajrayana Buddhism that means wheel of time or "time-cycles". The word Kālacakra is usually used to refer to a very complex teaching and practice in Tibetan Buddhism. Although the teaching is very advanced and esoteric, there is a tradition of offering it to large public audiences. Kālacakra tradition[edit] The Kālacakra deity represents a buddhahood and thus omniscience. Since Kālacakra is time and everything is under the influence of time, Kālacakra knows all. The Kālacakra refers to many different traditions: for example, it is related to Hindu Shaiva, Samkhya, Vaishnava, Vedic, Upanishadic and Puranic traditions and also to Jainism. Text of the Kālacakra Tantra[edit] The Kālacakra Tantra is divided into five chapters.[4] Ground Kālacakra[edit] The first two chapters are considered the "ground Kālacakra."
Passage des exotes - par Zéno Bianu Mais l'intention du voyageur fut-elle jamais géographique ? Pourquoi décidai-je d'aller ailleurs qu'ici ? Sans doute je voulais quitter quelque chose. Et ce désir de fuite, cette volonté de partance ne sont pas à dédaigner, Il y aura toujours, heureusement, des Charleville et des Rimbaud pour les fuir! Se révélaient ici l'espace romanesque de la trajectoire, un trésor de visions et par-dessus tout l'apprentissage de cette esthétique du divers chère à Segalen ("les remous pleins d'ivresse du grand fleuve Diversité"). L'exote Mais l'exote, il faut bien l'avouer, apprécie avant tout la joyeuse explosion du principe d'identité qui accompagne tout voyage digne de ce nom - l'émoi quantique qui le saisit, par exemple, dès qu'il a bouclé sa ceinture de sécurité dans la nef d'Air India. Comme si tout ce qui nous constituait dans l'espace du social, il n'y a encore qu'un instant, était devenu des plus improbables.
Almas (cryptozoology) The Almas (Mongolian: Алмас/Almas, Bulgarian: Алмас, Chechen: Алмазы, Turkish: Albıs), Mongolian for "wild man", is a purported hominid cryptozoological species reputed to inhabit the Caucasus and Pamir Mountains of central Asia, and the Altai Mountains of southern Mongolia.[1] The creature is not currently recognized or cataloged by science. Furthermore, scientists generally reject the possibility that such mega-fauna cryptids exist, because of the improbably large numbers necessary to maintain a breeding population,[2] and because climate and food supply issues make their survival in reported habitats unlikely.[3] Almas is a singular word in Mongolian; the properly formed Turkic plural would be 'almaslar'.[4] As is typical of similar legendary creatures throughout Central Asia, Russia, Pakistan and the Caucasus, the Almas is generally considered to be more akin to "wild people" in appearance and habits than to apes (in contrast to the Yeti of the Himalayas). Tjutjuna Notes
European witchcraft Belief in and practice of witchcraft in Europe can be traced to classical antiquity and has continuous history during the Middle Ages, culminating in the Early Modern witch hunts and giving rise to the fairy tale and popular culture "witch" stock character of modern times, as well as to the concept of the "modern witch" in Wicca and related movements of "contemporary witchcraft. History[edit] Antiquity[edit] Instances of persecution of witchcraft are documented from Classical Antiquity, paralleling evidence from the Ancient Near East and the Old Testament. In Ancient Greece, for example, Theoris, a woman of Lemnos, who is denounced by Demosthenes, was publicly tried at Athens and burned for her necromancy. In the imperial period, it is evident from many Latin authors and from the historians that Rome swarmed with occultists and diviners, many of whom in spite of the Lex Cornelia almost openly traded in poisons, and not infrequently in assassination to boot. High Middle Ages[edit]
Shambhala In Tibetan Buddhist and Hindu traditions, Shambhala (also spelled Shambala or Shamballa; Sanskrit: शंभाल; Tibetan: བདེ་འབྱུང་; Wylie: bde 'byung, pron. de-jung; Chinese: 香巴拉; pinyin: xiāngbālā) is a kingdom hidden somewhere in Inner Asia. It is mentioned in various ancient texts, including the Kalachakra Tantra[2] and the ancient texts of the Zhang Zhung culture which predated Tibetan Buddhism in western Tibet. The Bön[3] scriptures speak of a closely related land called Olmolungring. Hindu texts such as Vishnu Purana (4.24) mention the village Shambhala as the birthplace of Kalki, the final incarnation of Vishnu who will usher in a new Golden Age (Satya Yuga).[4] Whatever its historical basis, Shambhala gradually came to be seen as a Buddhist Pure Land, a fabulous kingdom whose reality is visionary or spiritual as much as physical or geographic. §In the Buddhist Kalachakra teachings[edit] Shambhala is ruled over by Lord Maitreya. Manjushri Yashas (Tib. §See also[edit] §[edit]
Le souffle du Sinaï - par Jean-Yves Leloup Le désert d'Abraham Avant Moïse et le Sinaï, il y eut Abraham, le premier à faire un pas hors de lui-même vers l'Inconnu, vers l'Autre qui l'appelait du plus loin de son silence. Alors, la terre prit des allures de chemin, et Abraham comprit que la vie est une longue marche dans le désert. "Yhwh dit à Abrâm : va vers toi-même, quitte ton pays, ta parenté, la maison de ton père, va vers le lieu que je te montrerai." Aller dans le désert, c'est d'abord "partir vers soi-même". Mais cette marche à travers le silence, vers l'infini et le sans limite de soi-même n'est pas démarche d'anéantissement; elle renoue avec ce que l'homme a d'Éternel, cet Éternel qu'il est lui-même et que lui voilent les occupations et les préoccupations du temps. Le Dieu d'Abraham, d'Isaac et de Jacob, Présence ardente et Silencieuse, Présence de l'Être, Présence de l'Autre, qui nous efface et qui nous fonde. Le premier désert de Moïse
Draugr "Sea-troll" of modern Scandinavian folklore as depicted by the Norwegian painter Theodor Kittelsen The draugr or draug (Old Norse: draugr, plural draugar; modern Icelandic: draugur, Faroese: dreygur and Norwegian, Swedish and Danish draugen), also called aptrganga, literally "again-walker" (Icelandic: afturganga) is an undead creature from Norse mythology, a subset of Germanic mythology. The Old Norse meaning of the word is a revenant. "The will appears to be strong, strong enough to draw the hugr [animate will] back to one's body. These reanimated individuals were known as draugar. Draugar live in their graves, often guarding treasure buried with them in their burial mound. A cognate is Old English: dréag "apparition, ghost".[2] Irish: dréag or driug, meaning "portent, meteor", is borrowed from either Old English or the Old Norse.[3] Traits[edit] Draugar possess superhuman strength, can increase their size at will, and carry the unmistakable stench of decay. Creation of draugar[edit]