Li Bai (Chinese 李白, Pinyin Lǐ Bái) (circa 701-762), who is also known by his courtesy name of Taibai (太白), was a Chinese poet acclaimed as one of the best and most important poets of the Tang dynasty, even the whole of Chinese poetry.
He and his friends such as Du Fu (712–770) were among the prominent figures in the flourishing of Chinese poetry of the Tang dynasty, often called the "Golden Age of Chinese Poetry." The expression "Three Wonders" denotes
Li Bai's poetry,
Pei Min's swordplay, and
Zhang Xu's calligraphy [1].
Around 1,000 poems attributed to Li are extant. His poems have been collected into the most important Tang dynasty collection, Heyue yingling ji [2], compiled in 753 by Yin Fan.
Thirty-four of Li Bai's poems are included in the anthology Three Hundred Tang Poems, which was first published in the 18th century [3].
Around the same time, translations of his poems began to appear in Europe. In Ezra Pound's famous work Cathay (1915), Li Bai's poems enjoy the lion's share (11 out of 19) [4]. Li Bai's poems became models for celebrating the pleasures of... More
Skritter; Learn Chinese Now; CC Liu, Crystal Quintero, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wiki edit
Row, row, row your board gently on the plane/Merrily, merrily, merrily, life moves to the drain
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Can non-Indians enjoy it, too?
Seasons change, Anicca reigns; it is the way of Samsara. That will be our new saying. What does it mean? "Weather alters, impermanence in all things; that's how it goes in this incessant Cycle." But at least on the Island of California, it's not so bad. We get a reprieve before fall starts in earnest. And it's called "Indian summer." Berkeley, one of the greatest places on the planet, got hit by an earthquake to wake everyone up and keep them agitating for positive change. We know things are changing because Christmas Tree Lane lights are going up in post-Eaton Fire Altadena, a Los Angeles custom.
Berkeley gets a wakeup call
Indian summer
Native Americans enter a Quaker Friends meeting and find them quite nice and peaceful.
An Indian summer is a period of unseasonably warm and dry weather that sometimes occurs in autumn in temperate regions of the northern hemisphere. Several sources describe a true Indian summer as not occurring until after the first frost, or more specifically the first "killing frost" [1][2][3].
The late 19th-century lexicographer Albert Matthews made an exhaustive search of early American literature in an attempt to discover who coined the expression [4]. The earliest reference he found dated to 1851. He also found the phrase in a letter written in England in 1778 but discounted that as a coincidental use of the phrase.
Later research showed that the earliest known reference to "Indian summer" in its current sense occurs in an essay written in the United States around 1778 by J. Hector St. John de Crevecœur, describing the character of autumn and implying the common usage of the expression:
Great rains at last replenish the springs, the brooks, the swamp and impregnate the earth. Then a severe frost succeeds which prepares it to receive the voluminous coat of snow which is soon to follow; though it is often preceded by a short interval of smoke and mildness, called the Indian Summer. This is in general the invariable rule: winter is not said properly to begin until those few moderate days & the raising of the water has announced it to Man.
The essay was first published in French around 1788 and remained unavailable in the United States until the 1920s [5].
Although the exact origins of the term are uncertain [6], it was perhaps so-called
because it was first noted in regions inhabited by Native Americans,
or because the natives first described it to Europeans [7],
or it had been based on the warm and hazy conditions in autumn when Native Americans hunted [6].
John James Audubon wrote about "The Indian Summer that extraordinary phenomenon of North America" in his journal on Nov. 20, 1820. He mentions the "constant Smoky atmosphere" and how the smoke irritates his eyes.
Audubon suspects that the condition of the air was caused by "Indians, firing the Prairies of the West." Audubon also mentions in many other places in his writings the reliance Native Americans had on fire. At no point does Audubon relate an Indian summer to warm temperatures during the cold seasons. More
Fall, of course, is a season; every fall is heralded by the autumnal equinox. But The Fall is something else. We can look at fascists in the White House, the Department of War, the Senate, Congress, and police departments across the nation for that sort of toppling or the coming down of the things we all loved and cherished as our birthright under a Constitution.
So long, Cruel Cruel Summer!
But the present administration, like administrations before it on both sides of the aisle, doesn't seem to care about the writing of the Forefathers at the birth of the nation. One is reminded of Hamilton, now out in a three-hour extravaganza of rap, choreographed dancing, and dueling. What is a good example of a Fall that falls upon us like an Indian summer, maybe driving along happily and without a care along PCH. Then BAM! Crash. Eyes covered with a sheet. Coroner's office...more Samsara.
The LA Fire in Altadena and the Pacific Palisades is the costliest fire disaster in US history.
.
It has been six months since the devastation touched Los Angeles, first with inexplicable winds then the common consequence, a California brush fire that spread all out of control. The cost of it may end up being a quarter trillion by some estimates. That seems impossible to believe because if it were true, how much better might that money be used?
Update from construction worker Adam Corolla
What was the cause in the Palisades Fire, a homeless campfire or a directed energy weapon deployed on some of the richest liberal real estate in the country? In Altadena it has become clear that the Eaton Fire was Southern California Edison's fault, according to conclusive forensic evidence gathered by attorneys Mikal Watts and Barbara Boxer's son (and Erin Brockovich) at lafirejustice.com.
SCE may be 100% to blame for starting it with their derelict transmission tower not being cared for, taken down, or secured and grounded to avoid this predictable outcome. But Mayor Bass, the lack of a reservoir, the fire department doing next to nothing, and no precautions being taken when the weather forecast perfectly predicted how bad the winds would be. Someone upstairs is to blame for not having enough precautions in place. It might be Kathryn Barger, but all eyes and targets are on Mayor Karen Bass and future president-wannabe Gov. Gav (Newsom). What does everyone claim the cause of this (Paradise/Camp-style) Fire was? Embers.
The best place to be this morning is in the former Khmer Empire, modern Cambodia, in the center of one of the largest ancient cities in the world at the Buddhist-Hindu temple at the center of it, Angkor Wat. (Wat means monastery complex or vihara).
The second-best place to be is in the middle of New York City at the holy site of "Manhattanhenge" where signs of intelligent life must have built a megastructure aligned with the astronomical objects in the visible sky, possibly with extraterrestrial assistance.
Here Comes the Sun (The Beatles)
Some say massive structures like the "Empire State" Building were in fact pre-Mud Flood architectural feats being taken credit for by modern builders with widely circulated photos of men eating lunch in precarious worksites as if that were all the proof needed.
LONDON, England — As the sun rose Saturday on the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, a crowd erupted in cheers at Stonehenge where the ancient monument in southern England has clocked the summer solstice over thousands of years.
The orange ball crested the northeast horizon behind the Heel Stone, the entrance to the stone circle, and shone its beam of light into the center of one of the world’s most famous prehistoric monuments.
The solstice is one of the few occasions each year when visitors are allowed to walk among the stones, which are otherwise fenced off.
What did the ancients know and practice?
The miracle of Newgrange, Ireland, eclipses Stonehenge (likeAdam's Calendar, Africa)...so that's why we've never heard of it. Newgrange (Irish Sí an Bhrú [1]) is a prehistoric monument in County Meath, Ireland, placed on a rise overlooking the River Boyne, five miles (8 km) west of the town of Drogheda [2]. It is an exceptionally grand passage tomb built during the Neolithic Period, around 3100 BC [3], making it older than Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids. Newgrange is the main monument in the Brú na Bóinne complex, a World Heritage Site that also includes the passage tombs of Knowth and Dowth, as well as other henges, burial mounds [which are a kind of stupa], and standing stones [3]. Newgrange consists of a large circular mound with an inner stone passageway and cruciform chamber More
The crowd gathered before dawn at the World Heritage Site to mark the start of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, beating the heat during the U.K.'s first amber heat-health alert issued since September 2023.
Temperatures later topped 91.4 degrees Fahrenheit (33 degrees Celsius) in Surrey, 80 miles (128 kilometers) east of Stonehenge, the hottest temperature recorded in the U.K. so far this year.
About 25,000 sun devotees (sun cult worshippers) and other revelers -- including Druids, pagans, hippies, locals, and tourists -- showed up, according to English Heritage which operates the site.
More than 400,000 others around the world watched a livestream. “This morning was a joyous and peaceful occasion with the most beautiful sunrise," said Richard Dewdney, head of operations at Stonehenge. “It is fantastic to see Stonehenge continuing to enchant and connect people.”
Stonehenge was built [and constantly re-adjusted] in stages 5,000 years ago on the flat lands of Salisbury Plain approximately 75 miles (120 kilometers) southwest of London.
The Sky People built mound-pyramids to the sun
[A few decades ago modern cranes and equipment were used to set up a pile of fallen stones, aligning them to their current positions; those photos were then forgotten, though they still exist, and everyone assumes ancient Druids built what is seen today 5,000 years ago before modern explorers stumbled onto the site. The walk from the carpark to the erected stones used to be lined with sandwich boards explaining the artificial evolution of the site with many adjustments over time, not one permanent setup millennia earlier.]
No one seems to have told the rest of the country, but where the sun sets (West Coast), the sun rose this morning to a new spring. Everything is green and sunny, cool and moist, and a person's thoughts lilt towards thoughts of
The Spring Equinox, also known as the vernal equinox, is one of the four solar festivals of the year. The equinox — which translates roughly in Latin to “equal night” — is when the sun sits vertically above the equator, making day and night equal across the planet.
The Spring Equinox officially marks the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and there are celebrations around the world to usher in longer days and springtime. [This is the real traditional New Year's Day, when the Earth (Tierra, Gaia, Bhumi) renews herself in preparation for another cycle.]
In some cultures, this day also marks the beginning of the new year, which in Iranian (original Aryan) culture is called Nowruz. The Spring Equinox is a brilliant time for new beginnings [like maybe a nice spring cleaning], no matter how one celebrates on March 20th.
This is the best time to begin a regular meditation practice, graduating to walking meditation, mindfulness in nature, and deep stillness to see things as they really are.
An outfit just for practice helps.
Do the basics: Put on all white. Find a quiet spot apart from distractions. Use this spot over and over again. It becomes powerful. Set down a mat and cushion (a bundle of leaves or grass is enough to get the tailbone higher than the knees). Sit. Inhale deeply. Release. Do it again a few times, without forcing the air out. It's just about letting go completely, so completely that the body hangs as if held up by a clothing hanger, not stiff, not slack.
You're a baby in white, so go easy.
Straighter is more comfortable, even though it doesn't seem like it at first. Posture is important to attention. Bring (advert) the attention to the present moment, this moment, and to stay in just this moment, remain aware of the breath. Which breath? This breath, just the one happening now all by itself. Become the watcher (not the commenter, fixer, improver, slowdowner, or anything else), just the watcher. This is mindfulness -- clear awareness of the present without evaluation.
Whoa, what a trip! What was that? I want that again!
Set a time limit in advance and keep it. Even if it would be nice to go longer because it is going so well, know the time of rising. Even if it is going horribly with raving lunatic thoughts of a psychopath with lurid fantasies and wrath, lust and revenge, delusion and a lightshow, know the time of rising. The mind will thank you later.
Ten minutes is a good start time, slowly working up to an hourlong sit. That seems impossible now, but in time, whaddyaknow, it suddenly is possible. What changed? I'dunno. This practice is about persistence. It does itself and then there is no effort. The enemies of that are expectations, unsettled greed or desire for achieving something, and the Five Hindrances. They will come to hinder. They are already present. They can be overcome. But whether or not they have been overcome, persist. This is spring. This is the beginning. Have "beginner's mind" in place of the "monkey mind" that usually rules the cage. Smile. It helps.
Instructions are confusing because it's so simple.
It is easy to say that "meditation is NOT about thinking." That's clear. That's easy to see. Don't indulge thought; just let them be by turning your attention to this subtle breath that keeps changing. What is difficult to grasp is that "meditation is NOT about not-thinking." Not-thinking may happen. It doesn't matter. As that is not the goal, if it doesn't happen, it's okay. Giving attention to one object and bringing attention back and back again and again ("Begin again" as Sharon Salzberg says) is what is important.
Feed me, Phone-Momma! Feed me more!!
The mind like a petulant and insolent child will resist. Let it. Bring it back. Do not scold it or become upset. Let it be. Surrender completely to this moment, whatever is in this moment, not being moved to do anything no matter what the mind says it must do. See what happens. Could the mind be wrong no matter what it feels or demands or insists is true?
How did Siddhartha Gautama do it?
We'll never see things as they really are so long as we keep believing that we already are seeing them that way. We have never been seeing them that way. If we had, we'd awaken. We'd be enlightened, which is to say, Dependent Origination would make sense. And it doesn't, does it? (Hint: It's a practice, not a theory). That's a whole different kind of meditation called insight (vipassana) after getting good at this kind, which is called serenity (samatha). Don't jump ahead. Let it go. (If all else fails, sign up for a free 10-day Goenka retreat. Everyone should do at least one in life).
How 'The Simpsons' animation evolved over 30 years
(Insider) On May 23, 2021, the 32nd season finale of The Simpsons aired on Fox TV, finishing off a landmark season where the show celebrated its 700th episode. The series has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a segment on The Tracey Ullman Show. On air for 32 years by 2021 and still counting, it's become the longest-running scripted series on prime time, the longest-running American animated series, and the longest-running American sitcom.
Homer, Marge, Lisa, Bart, and Maggie have evolved a lot over the course of three decades — in the style, movement, and details in character designs, all the way down to pupil size.
This episode of "Movies Insider" turns to David Silverman and Al Jean, two of the main minds behind the show since Day 1, to find out how the show's animation evolved from the rough-around-the-edges style of cartoonist Matt Groening's early sketches to the crisp, clean look of the show in its 32nd season. #TheSimpsons #Animation #MoviesInsider
Bart's Birthday Party (The SimpsonsSeries Finale)
(Scrooge200) A fake Simpsons series finale involves everyone in Springfield moving on, but Bart is hesitant to change it. Featuring John Cena and Danny Devito. From the Season 36 premiere, "Bart's Birthday."
The Simpsons drops surprise series finale
(Johnny 2 Cellos) For the Season 36 premiere, The Simpsons has done something unprecedented. They aired a surprise series (not season) finale. Well, sort of.
As somebody who grew up obsessed with The Simpsons, it’s cool to say that the show is going through something of a renaissance. Since Matt Selman took over as showrunner in Season 33, the show (created by Mat Groening) has started to feel fresher like it has a renewed energy.
But I think beyond that, the thing that’s really made me excited about the show again is the ways it’s been willing to experiment. And tonight’s premiere, "Bart’s Birthday," is the perfect example of that new energy.
The Simpsons is bringing something fresh to the table, embracing the show’s obscenely long and storied history to throw itself a premature series finale event. It’s one that celebrates The Simpsons in a way that an actual series finale would never be able to. So let’s talk about The Simpsons season premiere/series finale.
Edited by Joe Murphy @nazchoz798. Music:
Johnny 2 Cellos. Theme Music - Norman Marston
Johnny 2 Cellos Theme Remix- @BlackTyeChi. Video Used:
The Simpsons (1989-2024).
Copyright Disclaimer: Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted.
"Fair Use" guidelines: copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html
Insider (review), May 22, 2021; Matt Groening's The Simpsons (Fox TV) via Scrooge 200; Johnny 2 Cellos, Sept. 30, 2024; Eds., Wisdom Quarterly
Autumn Equinox's ancient spiritual meaning | Fall traditions, rituals, celebrations, sites
(Sakro Sawel1) Sept. 19, 2024: Let's take a stunningly deep dive into the traditions, ancient sites, and myths of the fall season, which begins with the autumnal equinox. It is recognized and celebrated around the world. Let's uncover the deeper spiritual meaning of this shift and its relevance today.
The autumn equinox is when day and night are equal (equi + nox = "night"), after which nights become longer than the daylight hours, and darkness becomes greater than light each day.
It was celebrated by ancient peoples for millennia and is still one of the most celebrated religious times of year. Why is the autumn equinox such an important religious event? What is its spiritual meaning?
The amazing temples of Mexico are aligned
To answer these questions, we delve into its celebration throughout history. We explore the autumn equinox tradition of Durga Puja (devotional ritual dedicated to Ma Durga) in India, which is celebrated by over a billion people, and the Persian festival of Mehregan.
We also look at the meaning of the legend of the Minotaur, the Eleusinian Mysteries (entheogenic drug rituals), the descent to Earth of the feathered serpent (reptilian Nagarajas) at Kukulkan (Quetzalcoatl) in Mexico, the hanging of the Norse god Odin on the World Tree (axis mundi), the journey of the Egyptian sun god Ra, and the crucifixion of Jesus [an element of astrotheology], which are all connected to the fall equinox.
CONTENTS
Introduction 00:00
What is the fall/autumn equinox? 01:55
Symbols of the equinox 02:59
Journey of the sun god 03:47
Autumn equinox traditions 06:19
Sites with fall equinox alignments 10:49
Great Pyramid symbolism 12:18
Sphinx Temple meaning 18:18
Ahu Akivi alignments 21:53
El Castillo solar serpent 23:45
Palace of Knossos Significance 27:50
Death, descent, Jesus, and Odin 34:59
Meaning and purpose of darkness 39:26
Conclusion 42:52
We explore the alignments of some of the world's most enigmatic sacred sites to the autumn equinox to interpret their symbolic spiritual meaning, including the Great Pyramid and Sphinx Temple in Egypt, Ahu Akivi on Easter Island, the Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent in Mexico (El Castillo at Chichen Itza), and the ancient Greek Palace of Knossos in Crete.
We also explore one of the main themes of the autumn equinox, which is the worship of a great spiritual Mother Goddess (like Ma Durga, Guanyin, Mother Mary, Inanna, and many other names).
We uncover how the beliefs and traditions of the autumn equinox are connected across cultures and how celebrating the equinox was an important component of an ancient religion of the sun that spread to different parts of the world in prehistoric times.
As part of this video, we discuss some original theories I put forward as does my husband Mark Sawel, including:
How the autumn equinox reveals the important role that darkness plays in life and creation
How the annual journey of the sun was used in ancient religions to symbolize the path to enlightenment (our Sacred Sun Path Theory)
The symbolism of autumn equinox alignments at the Great Pyramids and Sphinx Temple in Egypt, Ahu Akivi on Easter Island, Chichen Itza in Mexico, and Knossos in Greece, which encode a spiritual meaning connected to the theme of descent on the path of enlightenment to confront one’s own inner darkness before being spiritually reborn [like Siddhartha did under the Bodhi tree before becoming the Buddha]
That these ancient sites and traditions were connected as part of a now lost [worldwide] religion we call the Religion of the Sun
The origin of dragon and serpent (reptilian, naga) slaying myths and how their symbolism was seen by the ancients in the stars
The deeper meaning in the pattern of descending into the earth, underworld, matter, body, tomb, subconscious, and womb, which can be found in the life of sun gods such as Ra, Rama, Odin, Jesus, and Osiris
An interpretation of the story of Theseus, Ariadne, the Minotaur, and the labyrinth and how it likely derives from Minoan initiatory rites conducted on the autumn equinox.
We first published these ideas between 2011 and 2016, where more details can be found in our book Ancient Solstice, which discusses the spiritual meaning of the fall/autumn equinox and ancient sites aligned to it, as well as how to celebrate it: sakrosawel.com/ancient-solstice.
NOTE ABOUT ATTRIBUTING OUR WORK
The information in this video is the culmination of years of work and research. It contains our unique interpretations of ancient sites and traditions. If anyone likes it and wants to share it, do so without plagiarizing it, please. Please share the video while giving us due credit as the source (Sakro and Mark Sawel).
This video is part of a series about the spiritual meaning of the solstices and equinoxes. Watch the other videos in this series:
Winter solstice: • WINTER SOLSTICE Ancient Spiritual Mea...
Spring equinox: • SPRING EQUINOX Ancient Spiritual Mean...
Summer solstice: • SUMMER SOLSTICE Ancient Spiritual Mea...
WEBSITE: sakrosawel.com.To make sure to keep receiving content from Sakro Sawel, sign up for this free newsletter at sakrosawel.com/newsletter. X/Twitter: sakrosawel.
Sakro Sawel, (Sakro Sawel1 on YouTube, Sept. 20, 2024); Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
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