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)
Christian mysticism Christian mysticism refers to the development of mystical practices and theory within Christianity. It has often been connected to mystical theology, especially in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions. The attributes and means by which Christian mysticism is studied and practiced are varied and range from ecstatic visions of the soul's mystical union with God to simple prayerful contemplation of Holy Scripture (i.e., Lectio Divina). Etymology[edit] "Mysticism" is derived from the Greek μυω, meaning "to conceal",[1] and its derivative μυστικός, mystikos, meaning 'an initiate'. In the Hellenistic world, a "mystikos" was an initiate of a mystery religion. In early Christianity the term "mystikos" referred to three dimensions, which soon became intertwined, namely the biblical, the liturgical and the spiritual or contemplative. Definition[edit] Presence[edit] Presence versus experience[edit] Personal transformation[edit] Social constructionism[edit] Development[edit] Gospels[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] Language of the birds In mythology, medieval literature and occultism, the language of the birds is postulated as a mystical, perfect divine language, green language, adamic language, enochian language, angelic language or a mythical or magical language used by birds to communicate with the initiated. History[edit] In Indo-European religion, the behavior of birds has long been used for the purposes of divination by augurs. According to a suggestion by Walter Burkert, these customs may have their roots in the Paleolithic when, during the Ice Age, early humans looked for carrion by observing scavenging birds.[1] There are also examples of contemporary bird-human communication and symbiosis. Ukrainian language is known as "nightingale speech" amongst its speakers. Mythology[edit] Norse mythology[edit] In Norse mythology, the power to understand the language of the birds was a sign of great wisdom. The legendary king of Sweden Dag the Wise was so wise that he could understand what birds said. Greek mythology[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
Doppelgänger In fiction and folklore, a doppelgänger or doppelgaenger (/ˈdɒp(ə)lˌɡɛŋə/ or /-ˌɡæŋə/; German: [ˈdɔpəlˌɡɛŋɐ] ( ), literally "double-goer") is a look-alike or double of a living person who is sometimes portrayed as a harbinger of bad luck. In some traditions, a doppelgänger seen by a person's relative or friend portends illness or danger while seeing one's own doppelgänger is said to be an omen of death. In contemporary vernacular, the word doppelgänger is often used in a more general sense to identify any person that physically or perhaps even behaviorally resembles another person. Spelling[edit] The word doppelgänger is a loanword from German Doppelgänger, consisting of the two substantives Doppel (double) Gänger (walker or goer).[1][2] The singular and plural form are the same in German, but English usually prefers the plural "doppelgangers." Mythology[edit] In Norse mythology, a vardøger is a ghostly double who precedes a living person and is seen performing their actions in advance.
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]