Genesis
Adam and Eve by Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472- 1553) via Wikipedia
In Religion
Genesis (Hebrew Bereshit = “In the beginning”) is the first book of the Bible, containing the two different versions of the Jewish and Christian the creation story. Among other things, Genesis tells the tale of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah’s Ark, and God’s involvement with the apparently chosen people, the Israelites.
Although Genesis is the first book to appear in the Bible’s collection of different books, scholars say it’s not the oldest written biblical material. The following is a transcription of the first few verses of Genesis:
1:1 In the beginning God created heaven and earth.
Bereshit bara Elohim et hashamayim ve’et ha’arets.
1:2 The earth was without form and empty, with darkness on the face of the depths, but God’s spirit moved on the water’s surface.
Veha’arets hayetah tohu vavohu vechoshech al-peney tehom veruach Elohim merachefet al-peney hamayim.
1:3 God said, ‘There shall be light,’ and light came into existence.
Vayomer Elohim yehi-or vayehi-or.
1:4 God saw that the light was good, and God divided between the light and the darkness.
Vayar Elohim et-ha’or ki-tov vayavdel Elohim beyn ha’or uveyn hachoshech.¹
The author of Genesis was traditionally thought to be Moses. But modern scholarship looks to several different anonymous sources, and academic theories are always changing as to why and how this book came about.
Genesis concert at the Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., USA. Performing "I Know What I Like" by Andrew Bossi via Wikipedia
In Music
Genesis is also the name of an English progressive rock group which recorded the notable album, Selling England by the Pound (1973), along with other, arguably less achieved albums like The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway (1974).
The band’s mature sound was, for the most part, complex and introspective (some nicknamed the band “Genesnooze”) but they remain an important influence in the history of rock.
The band also spawned commercially successful solo careers for Peter Gabriel and drummer/vocalist Phil Collins. When Gabriel left the band in 1975, the remainder of Genesis (with Collins taking up lead vocals) began to produce more radio-friendly singles. But some hard core Genesis fans felt that the departure of Gabriel left behind a watered down, flimsy remnant of the “real” Genesis.
A Genesis collector array in the Genesis clean lab at the Johnson Space Center (photo courtesy of NASA) via Wikipedia
In Space
The Genesis space probe was launched by NASA in 2001 to study and collect samples of solar winds. It was the first spacecraft to return material to Earth since the Apollo missions.
Unfortunately the Genesis recovery parachute malfunctioned. So in 2004 the probe crash landed in Utah, resulting in the loss of some otherwise valuable data.
Genesis I is the name of an experimental space habitat launched by an American firm in 2006.
The habitat is inflatable, making launch easier due to its initial deflated diameter of 1.6 metres. Fully expanded, the Genesis I measures 4.4 by 2.54 metres.
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¹ Source » http://bible.ort.org/books/torahd5.asp
Related posts » Cherubim, Divination, Eden, Noah, Tree of Life
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General Theory of Relativity
Illustration of spacetime curvature via Wikipedia
Albert Einstein‘s groundbreaking relativity theory includes two subsets—the special theory of relativity (1905) and the general theory of relativity (1916).
The general theory includes the earlier special theory of relativity but goes on to explain accelerated frames of reference. Also, it extends the special theory by proposing a general theory of gravitation.
Einstein understands gravity as arising from a curvature of space and time. The general theory presents the universe as a four-dimensional space-time continuum. So the presence of mass ‘curves’ space so as to create the effect of gravity.
The general theory of relativity has been supported by the orbital motion of the planet Mercury which, from the perspective of Newtonian theory, seems anomalous.
Perhaps even more radical, the special theory predicts that as objects move, time slows down. And the general theory predicts that gravity effects the passage of time. Both of these hypotheses have been supported by atomic clocks and GPS measurements.¹
So, quite unlike idle speculation and imaginary fantasies, Eisntein’s seemingly “weird” ideas are supported by empirical evidence. While other theories of gravitation exist, they tend to have much in common with Einstein’s.
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¹ See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_dilation.
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Gemini
Gemini by Justinsanity via Flickr
Gemini (May 21-June 22) is the third and a spring sign of the zodiac, symbolized by the cosmic twins and associated with the planetary ruler of Mercury. Its element is air.
Astrologers claim that the twins archetype symbolizes a creative, dynamic union between complementary forces. If this archetypal pattern becomes negative and unbalanced (e.g. Cain and Abel, Daedelus-Icarus), the high-flying Gemini is susceptible to crashing.
Gemini has also been associated with the mythical dyads of Castor and Pollux (Greece), Romulus and Remus (Rome), and Gilgamesh and Enkidu (Babylonia), along with the philosophical concepts of Yin and Yang (China).
From its planetary ruler Mercury, Gemini is commonly said to be speedy, inspired, curious and perhaps unpredictable.
Prominent Gemini are Marilyn Monroe, Bob Hope, Clint Eastwood, Paul McCartney, Angelina Jolie, and former director of the CIA and then U.S. President George H. W. Bush.¹
In 1965-1966, a series of manned orbiting USA spacecraft were called Gemini.
The idea of Gemini has appeared in pop culture, most notably in music. The Moody Blues, in their 1981 comeback album, Long Distance Voyager, penned a top 20 hit called “Gemini Dream.” David Bowie, in his 2002 album Heathen recorded Norman Carl Odam’s song, “I took a trip on a Gemini Spaceship.” And the Japanese pop band Alice Nine released a studio album called Gemini in 2011.
In Canada, the annual awards for excellence in English language TV are called the Gemini Awards.
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¹ For more, see http://www.vegaattractions.com/celebrity/gem.html
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Geertz, Clifford James
Clifford Geertz 1926-2006 by xeeliz via Flickr
Clifford James Geertz (1926-2006) was an influential American anthropologist. He’s best known for his The Interpretation of Cultures (1973), which outlines the importance of symbolic thought and communication in the generation and reproduction of cultures.
Geertz argues for a so-called ‘thick interpretation’ of symbols instead of a ‘thin’ one. By this he means that anthropologists should interpret symbolic meanings within the context of a given culture. So instead of postulating the idea of inherited universals, as Carl Jung did with his theory of archetypes, Geertz wants to see how language and symbolic thought reflect and inform everyday life.
While Geertz is to be applauded for his desire to understand people within the context of their cultures, just how this is done without subjective bias remains an important question for anthropologists.
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Shakti Gawain
Abstract - by Matthew Burpee via Flickr
Shakti Gawain is a contemporary American spiritualist and author who lives in California. Her books have sold over 10 million copies.¹ The most popular of her publications are Creative Visualization and Living in the Light, although she has penned several others. ²
Gawain writes about how she spent time working as a cleaning lady before she became a popular spiritual teacher. She believes that positive attitude and expectation create a positive reality. She also advocates an eclectic approach to living in relation to the Divine, an approach which includes prayer, chant, meditation, and the “creative visualization” of desired outcomes.
Just how effective creative visualization really is remains a matter of debate. Many visualizers’ visualizations seem to fall flat—that is, they just don’t happen. Some common explanations for the failure of a visualization to come about are “the time wasn’t right” or “I didn’t focus well enough” and so on.³
But for Gawain, it seems that her visualizations for prosperity did come about.
Sympathetic to Carl Jung’s idea of synchronicity, Gawain rejects the Eastern belief in reincarnation on the grounds that it’s a limiting man-made theory. Along the lines of the (some would say pioneering) channeler Jane Roberts, Gawain stresses the importance of living in the present while recognizing past influences.
Most recently, her website stresses the importance of balancing work and play, along with responsibilities to self and others.
I am finding a balance in my life of work and play, of my responsibilities to others and to myself.4
Related Posts » Active Imagination, Channeling, Shakti
¹ http://www.shaktigawain.com/about
² See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakti_Gawain
³ Another explanation could be that the personal desire wasn’t in line with God’s will. But we don’t hear that one too much from creative visualizers because they usually (and almost dogmatically) claim that we create our own reality.
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Ganesha
Tallest Ganesha idol in India : 45 feet This Ganesha idol is believed to be the tallest in India. from Khairatabad, Hyderabad Image by Freebird (Bobinson KB) via Flickr
Often regarded as the son of Siva and Parvati,¹ Ganesha (or Ganesh) is a widespread Hindu god that’s been worshipped from about 400 CE to the present.
Literally losing his head after a burning glance from Sani, it was replaced with that of an elephant, as it remains today.
The Mahabharata mentions Ganesha as the scribe who wrote down that epic according to Vyasa’s dictation. And he’s said to embody the apparently primal sound of the AUM mantra.
Ganesha is also important to Jains and has a significant role in Asian Buddhism and Indian art in general.
To many monotheists, the idea of worshiping some kind of mix of animal and human god is difficult to understand. Some defenders of the practice, however, note that animals are held to be sacred in many spiritual traditions—for instance, in Shamanism. So the idea is not just particular to Asian religion.
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¹ http://earthpages.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/ganesha/#comment-9447
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Gabriel
The Annunciation by Anton Raphael Mengs (1728 – 1779) - Gabriel appears to the Virgin Mary via Wikipedia
Gabriel is one of the four Catholic Archangels (also Michael, Raphael and Uriel). Along with Michael, Gabriel is found in Christianity, Judaism and Islam.
A lot of New Age writers and alleged channelers talk about or, perhaps, dispense supposed “messages” from Gabriel, along with other angels. While this kind of stuff can be compelling, especially if someone is searching for a higher purpose in life, we really have no way of telling if it’s real, imagined¹ or purposely made up by scammers.
The same charge, of course, has been made against organized religions. Their discourses about angels are often said to be divinely inspired. But… who’s to say for sure?
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¹ It would be relatively easy for someone to fool themselves into thinking they were divine prophets for some angel or higher being. All they’d have to do is get in a comfy chair, relax a bit, slip into a slightly meditative consciousness, and then let their imaginations or subconscious run wild. Most likely, this is what Jane Roberts did, who claimed to channel the entity Seth. Another possibility, usually dismissed by contemporary psychiatry but a possibility nonetheless, is that a malevolent spiritual being influences the channeler. So the person is channeling. But not what they think they are.
This post needs more content. Why not help us out and expand it? Please remember that copying and pasting large amounts of material from Wikipedia (or some other online encyclopedia) is not what Earthpages.ca is about. We want a fresh view, from you… not from your copy and paste editor!
Thanks,
Michael Clark, Ph.D
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Gabars
Depiction of Zoroaster at the age of 30 via Wikipedia
Gabars is a formerly derogatory term used by Iranian Muslims for a small population of about 25,000 Parsees following the ancient teachings of Zoroaster.
The Encyclopedia Britannica, which recently seems to have gone online without cutting short its articles, has a good entry: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/223068/Gabar
This post needs more content. Why not help us out and expand it? Please remember that copying and pasting large amounts of material from Wikipedia (or some other online encyclopedia) is not what Earthpages.ca is about. We want a fresh view, from you… not from your copy and paste editor!
Thanks,
Michael Clark, Ph.D.
Garhashtya
The Rig Veda is one of the oldest religious texts. This Rig Veda manuscript is in Devanagari via Wikipedia
Garhashtya is the second Hindu asrama¹ (Vedic stage of life) in which the male generally enters into the marriage bond as a sacred duty and exercise in sexual self-control.
In this stage the man becomes a householder, replete with children and fulfils his dharma by taking a job according to his caste position.
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¹ In Hinduism this is the traditional belief, stemming from the Veda, that spiritual aspirants belonging to the “twice born” castes should proceed through four asrama, or stages of life. These stages are: brahmacharya, garhashtya, vanaprashta and sannyasa.
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Gap of Nothingness
Drawing for The New York Times via Wikipedia
The Gap of Nothingness is an idea found in the existentialism of the French philosopher, J. P. Sartre.
In his Being and Nothingness: An Essay on Phenomenological Ontology (L’Être et le néant : Essai d’ontologie phénoménologique) of 1948, Sartre talks about a ‘place’ or ‘no-place’ between stimulus (from the world of experience) and response (from the person).
For Sartre, this gap is the seat of human freedom that differentiates us from brutes. Animals apparently do not have the ability to choose their response to stimuli as do humans.
As most undergraduate professors in the humanities will tell you, an animal always eats when hungry, food is present, and environmental conditions are favorable. Humans, however, are (so it’s said) able to delay or deny this gratification through personal choice.
However, many thinkers and scientific researchers question the conjectural line that Sartre draws between the free will of humans and animals. Recent studies have shown that animals do, indeed, delay gratification for reasons often unknown to us.
In critique of Sartre’s idea, it’s a common mistake to assume that a human being can really know how an animal thinks (or doesn’t think). Moreover, to lump all animals together seems a ridiculous approach today, considering what we know about various brain capacities and complexities among species.
Despite all this, Sartre was a superstar in academic and literary circles during the 1960s.
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