Paradise Lost

Solomon According to the Talmud, Solomon is one of the 48 prophets.[4] In the Qur'an, he is considered a major prophet, and Muslims generally refer to him by the Arabic variant Sulayman, son of David. Biblical account[edit] Succession[edit] Cornelis de Vos, The Anointing of Solomon . According to 1 Kings 1:39, Solomon was anointed by Zadok. According to the biblical First Book of Kings, when David was old, "he could not get warm Adonijah asked to marry Abishag the Shunammite, but Solomon disallowed that, although Bathsheba now pleaded on Adonijah's behalf. Wisdom[edit] Artist's depiction of Solomon's court (Ingobertus, c. 880) One of the qualities most ascribed to Solomon is his wisdom. "And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. The judgment of Solomon (painting on ceramic), Castelli, IT: Lille Museum of Fine Arts, 18th century . Solomon is also noted as one of many authors of Wisdom literature.

Faust Protagonist of a classic German legend Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend, based on the historical Johann Georg Faust (c. 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroads, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. The Faust legend has been the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical works that have reinterpreted it through the ages. "Faust" and the adjective "Faustian" imply a situation in which an ambitious person surrenders moral integrity in order to achieve power and success for a limited term.[1][2] Summary of the story[edit] Faust is bored and depressed with his life as a scholar. During the term of the bargain, Faust makes use of Mephistopheles in various ways. Sources[edit] The character in Polish folklore named Pan Twardowski presents similarities with Faust. Das Wagnerbuch (1593)Das Widmann'sche Faustbuch (1599)Dr. Notes[edit]

Paradise Lost: Book  1 (1674 version) by John Milton OF Mans First Disobedience, and the Fruit Of that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal tast Brought Death into the World, and all our woe, With loss of Eden, till one greater Man Restore us, and regain the blissful Seat, Sing Heav'nly Muse, that on the secret top Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire That Shepherd, who first taught the chosen Seed, In the Beginning how the Heav'ns and Earth Rose out of Chaos: or if Sion Hill Delight thee more, and Siloa's brook that flow'd Fast by the Oracle of God; I thence Invoke thy aid to my adventrous Song, That with no middle flight intends to soar Above th' Aonian Mount, while it pursues Things unattempted yet in Prose or Rhime. And chiefly Thou, O Spirit, that dost prefer Before all Temples th' upright heart and pure, Instruct me, for Thou know'st; Thou from the first Wast present, and with mighty wings outspread Dove-like satst brooding on the vast Abyss And mad'st it pregnant: What in me is dark Illumin, what is low raise and support; I may assert Eternal Providence,

Garden of Eden The Garden of Eden (Hebrew גַּן עֵדֶן, Gan ʿEḏen) is the biblical "garden of God", described most notably in the Book of Genesis chapters 2 and 3, and also in the Book of Ezekiel.[2] The "garden of God", not called Eden, is mentioned in Genesis 14, and the "trees of the garden" are mentioned in Ezekiel 31. The Book of Zechariah and the Book of Psalms also refer to trees and water in relation to the temple without explicitly mentioning Eden.[3] Traditionally, the favoured derivation of the name "Eden" was from the Akkadian edinnu, derived from a Sumerian word meaning "plain" or "steppe". Biblical narratives[edit] Eden in Genesis[edit] The second part of the Genesis creation narrative, in Genesis 2:4–3:24, opens with "the LORD God"(v.7) creating the first man (Adam), whom he placed in a garden that he planted "eastward in Eden". The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. Eden in Ezekiel[edit] Proposed locations[edit]

Queen of Sheba The Queen of Sheba (Hebrew: מלכת שבא‎, Malkaṯ Šəḇâ in Biblical Hebrew; Malkat Sh'va in Modern Hebrew; Ge'ez: ንግሥተ ሳባ, Nigiste Saba (Nəgəstä Saba); Arabic: ملكة سبأ‎, Malikat Sabaʾ) was a monarch of the ancient kingdom of Sheba and is referred to in Yemenite and Ethiopian history, the Bible, the Qur'an, Yoruba customary tradition, and Josephus. She is widely assumed to have been a queen regnant, but, since there is no historical proof of this, she may have been a queen consort.[9] The location of her kingdom is uncertain. Wallis Budge believes it to be Ethiopia[10] while Islamic tradition says Yemen. More modern scholarship suggests it was the South Arabian kingdom of Saba.[11] Diverse references[edit] The queen of Sheba has been called a variety of names by different peoples in different times. In the Ethiopian Book of Aksum, she is described as establishing a new capital city at Azeba, while the Kebra Negast refers to her building a capital at Debra Makeda, or "Mount Makeda". Story[edit]

Henrik Ibsen Norwegian playwright and theatre director Several of his later dramas were considered scandalous to many of his era, when European theatre was expected to model strict morals of family life and propriety. Ibsen's later work examined the realities that lay behind the facades, revealing much that was disquieting to a number of his contemporaries. He had a critical eye and conducted a free inquiry into the conditions of life and issues of morality. His early poetic and cinematic play Peer Gynt, however, also has strong surreal elements.[6] Ibsen is often ranked as one of the most distinguished playwrights in the European tradition.[7] Richard Hornby describes him as "a profound poetic dramatist—the best since Shakespeare".[8] He is widely regarded as the foremost playwright of the nineteenth century.[7][9] He influenced other playwrights and novelists such as George Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde, Arthur Miller, James Joyce, Eugene O'Neill, and Miroslav Krleža. Early life and family[edit]

Swadharma There is no proper equivalent in English for the Sanskrit term 'Dharma'. It is generally rendered as 'duty', 'righteousness'. Any action that is best calculated to bring Sreyas (liberation) and Abhyudaya (exaltation) is Dharma. God, religion and Dharma are inseparable. The mark of Dharma is Achara (good conduct). Dharma tops the list of the four Purusharthas, viz., Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. "The Brahmana was Brahma's mouth; the Rajanya was made His two arms; His two thighs the Vaishya; the Sudra was born of His two feet." Courage, generosity, vigour, prowess, splendour, firmness, dexterity, not fleeing from battle, the nature of a ruler, protection of the people, gifts, doing sacrifices and study of the Vedas are the duties of a Kshatriya born of his own nature. Ploughing, protection of cattle, trade, charity, doing sacrifice, study of the Vedas, engaging in commerce, finance and agriculture are the duties of a Vaishya born of his own nature. There is another important point.

Gospel of Thomas The Coptic-Language text, the second of seven contained in what modern-day scholars have designated as Codex II, is composed of 114 sayings attributed to Jesus.[2] Almost half of these sayings resemble those found in the Canonical Gospels, while it is speculated that the other sayings were added from Gnostic tradition.[3] Its place of origin may have been Syria, where Thomasine traditions were strong.[4] The introduction states: "These are the hidden words that the living Jesus spoke and Didymos Judas Thomas wrote them down."[5] Didymus (Greek) and Thomas (Aramaic) both mean "twin". Some critical scholars suspect that this reference to the Apostle Thomas is false, and that therefore the true author is unknown.[6] The Gospel of Thomas is very different in tone and structure from other New Testament apocrypha and the four Canonical Gospels. Bishop Eusebius included it among a group of books that he believed to be not only spurious, but "the fictions of heretics".[13] P. P. Attestation[edit]

Menelik I Menelik I (called Bäynä Ləkḥəm in the Kebra Nagast; also named Ebna la-Hakim, Arabic: Ibn Al-Hakim, "Son of the Wise"[1]), first Solomonic Emperor of Ethiopia, is traditionally believed to be the son of King Solomon of ancient Israel and Makeda, ancient Queen of Sheba (in modern Ethiopia). He is alleged to have ruled around 950 BC, according to traditional sources.[2][3] Tradition credits him with bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Ethiopia, following a visit to Jerusalem to meet his father upon reaching adulthood. According to the Kebra Nagast, King Solomon had intended on sending one son of each of his nobles and one son of each temple priest with Menelik upon his return to his mother's kingdom. According to legend, he founded the Solomonic dynasty of Ethiopia that ruled Ethiopia with few interruptions for close to three thousand years (and 225 generations later ended with the fall of Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974). Popular culture[edit] See also[edit] References[edit]

Mikhail Lermontov Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov (/ˈlɛərmənˌtɔːf, -ˌtɒf/;[1] Russian: Михаи́л Ю́рьевич Ле́рмонтов, IPA: [mʲɪxɐˈil ˈjurʲjɪvʲɪtɕ ˈlʲɛrməntəf]; October 15 [O.S. October 3] 1814 – July 27 [O.S. July 15] 1841) was a Russian Romantic writer, poet and painter, sometimes called "the poet of the Caucasus", the most important Russian poet after Alexander Pushkin's death in 1837 and the greatest figure in Russian Romanticism. Biography[edit] Early life[edit] Maria Mikhaylovna Lermontova (1795–1817), the mother of the poet The marriage proved ill-suited and the couple soon grew apart. Nine days after Maria's death a final row broke out in Tarkhany and Yuri rushed away to his Kropotovo estate in Tula Governorate where his five sisters resided. Yuri Petrovich Lermontov (1787–1831), the poet's father In June 1817 Yelizaveta Alekseyevna moved her grandson to Penza. Yelizaveta Arsenyeva, Lermontov's grandmother School years[edit] Moscow University[edit] 1832–1837[edit] Death of the Poet[edit] First exile[edit]