Breathing and dreaming

It's easy to consider your own land element. Some people describe themselves simply as "townies" or "country bumpkins". My friend and his family are, as he said, "Mountain People". He mentioned that generations of his ancestors all lived in the mountains of Germany. It's why he prefers cool weather, winter and snow. I guess it is because those mountains made up his personality. It's like romance of human genes and landscape.

What type of person are you? Consider the landscape of your family of origin. I knew another who described herself as a "City Girl" because she was born, raised and lived all her life in cities. Another person I know said they're a "farm girl" because she's always lived in a rural community surrounded by farms. I'm a "beach girl". I was born in a naval town, I regularly visited the beach growing up, I love boats and don't get seasick. My relatives have owned boats, worked on them and live beside the sea. A few of my family members like to surf. I get a thrill of butterflies whenever I get near the coastline. I love it. My heart pounds by the sea. There's been times when I haven't gone to a beach for ages but I often dream of being there. I've gone to places like in the picture above with palms, warm sea and sand. I guess it's in my blood to enjoy beaches.

It isn't just about DNA. The landscape also makes us who we are. It is because our ancestors are also part of the same place. Buried there and ingrained features with the past. Nature is important. To deny us our natural landscape is to deny who we are. Our souls are linked to nature. If anyone tries to remove this connection we have with land then it's no different to cutting off the food supply. We're not separate from nature or the animals.

The land and sea nurtures us, feeds us, helps us breath and dream. The land and sea contains magic, memories, healing properties, power and spirits. If you're from the town or city, the concrete, stone, metals, glass and people (animals) you'll get fragments and broken puzzle works. So when people visit nature, free from urban places, they feel a sense of oneness. Some people can't describe what it is as they're transfixed.

Links of interest:

Spending time in nature makes us feel alive, study shows
Psychological benefits of Nature
Why nature if therapeutic

  

Hidden Within the Norse Gods - Part I

There is a lot of meaning within one single name. For instance, the name of a Norse god tells a lot. I will examine some names and reveal their hidden messages. I can't do all of them on a single entry. This will be broken up into four parts.

Odin: First of all it starts as the letter "O" and finishes as "din". Din is also another name for "loud" and rooted in other Indo-European languages with "don". Don means lord. Like the Greek Adonis it also means "man" and "lord" or strong and handsome man!. The letter "O" at front, is also fronted by "W" for Woden or Wotan in different Germanic languages. The "Wo" and "O" front is wood. So Odin is "Wood Lord" and "Lord of the Woods". Taken with it's other letters to mean "din" and "Wednesday" (Woden's Day) means King of the Woods, King of the Forest, Lord of the Forest and Woods Man. His Greek counterpart is Hermes, and that is from the Mycenaean word for "Hermeneus", meaning interpreter of secret messages in stone! There is the myth of Odin understanding the secret of the runes. Wednesday is "Day of the Woods King" or "Day of the Forest King". The man of the wood. The lord and king of the forest. Strong Man (master) of the Wood. Handsome Lord of the Forest. Handsome Strong Man of the Woods . Master of the Forest = Odin.   

Ostara: Also the name begins "O" then "stara". O-stara. O is the au sound. Aus-tara and "Aus" means "to shine" and "star" to shine. Star and shine like the stars. Star shine, and the feminine sounding "Ostara" with Eostre. The name is linked to Easter. Ostara also has further messages in the name. The name doesn't just mean "shine" but also it says "Aura" and "East". Star of the East, but the word Star also means stellar, and celestial. Not just a star but sun and moon that appear from the east. It's like the Phoenician Goddess Astarte and the Assyrian Goddess Ishtar. Now the Greek sound "Aster" and Proto-Aryan or Proto-Indo European (PIE) is the word "ster" (later Star). Ster is linked to the word "Dyue" to mean "shining" and "starry" or star shine. The st and d were the same sounds in PIE languages. This is where the name dwi-yo is from, pronounced Div-yana. This is an earlier form of the sound Diana. Diana is the Roman Goddess of the moon and Her Greek counterpart is Artemis. So basically Ostara is "Star of the East", "Star shining", with female meaning "Star Maiden of the East", "Bright maiden" "Star Maiden", "Star Woman" "Lady of Stars" = Ostara.  

Idunn: The name Idunn or Idunna is pronounced this way because the English sound and alphabet creates the "d". Originally it is "th" sounding. It's pronounced i-thun-na or e-thu-na. Elsewhere in ancient Greece is a name of a goddess that sounds ai-thi-na, which is how Athena is pronounced. The Greek Goddess Athena is a Goddess of art and wisdom. She is also a guardian and protectress, as Idunn or Idunna is a protectress of golden apples. Apples of eternal youth and apples of knowledge or wisdom. Idunna is the Norse equivalent of Athena. Here we have Idunna whose name means the feminine "eternal", "female guard" and "woman who guards". She is the "woman who guards eternity", "woman who guards youth" and "woman who guards wisdom". Female guardian of eternity = Idunn.  
 
Skadi: It's easy to say that the name "Skadi" reminds us of ski for skiing. But the word ski comes from Skadi. It also links to the region "Scandinavia" in words. Skadi has been name related to the Gothic "scato" meaning shadow. The Old Norse word Skadi means "harmful". What about it's older and wider roots in PIE languages? Skadi is, in Norse mythology, an ice giantess of beauty. The name "Skadi" also relates to darkness and the underworld. Skadi is pronounced "Sh-ka-di" and related to the Eastern Indo-European and Hindu "Shakti". This is "prime feminine power" and "female force of energy". Shakti power is Sanskrit for "female ability" and "primordial". This name might be rooted to the Vedic "Sachi" who was a powerful queen. Shakti is possibly a variant and alternative to the powerful Goddess Kali. Both names Skadi and Kali are identical and both link to the Finnish Goddess Kalma. Now the giantess Skadi is not just an "ice giantess of beauty" but also a queen and feminine force, a goddess. She is "Goddess of the Cosmos", "Dark Goddess", "Queen of the Cosmos" = Skadi.   
 
Freya: There are different ways of spelling Freya in modern times but the earliest Old Norse version is "Freyja". It means "lady" and "woman" and related to the Low German "Fro" and "Frau". The Indo European languages spell the "f" as a ph. The ph sounds like "f" as in the ancient Etruscan "phro" to mean the lady. A-phro-dite is within the name Aphrodite, the Greek Goddess counterpart of Freya. The name Aphrodite broke up sounds like "Lady of Day" as "dite" is day. The breakdown of A-phro-dite relates to foam, shining, evening star and daylight. The meaning is drawn from different sources with various words added. "Freya" also relates to the Roman word "Veneres" meaning the Goddess of love and beauty Venus. The Avestan word Vanaiti, Sanskrit Vanis and Vanati mean "desire" and possibly modern English "vanity" linked to it also. The ancient Scandinavian name of Freya is "Vanadis" and this means "Van daughter" or "daughter of the Vanir". The Vanir are another race of gods. The word Vanir linked to the name Venus to mean "shining" "lady" and "desire". The PIE root word of Venus and Vanir is "Wen" and it means love. So does the Norse tales of the Vanir mean "the gods of love"? Or "gods of the day"? This word "Wen" gave birth to other Aryan words such as "wan", "wench", "win", "wish", "venari", "venus", "veria", "vanadis". Freya has the following suggestions in Her name, and that is "The Lady", "Lady of Day", "Lady of Evening Star", "Lady of Love and Beauty" and "Lovely Lady of Day" = Freya.

Frigg: This goddess is also known as Frigga. The queen and wife of Odin and a goddess of marriage and motherhood. Her name comes from PIE "fri" and "frijj" to mean wife. She's one of the Aesir, a race of gods different to the Vanir. Aesir means "god" and "life force". However, the word Aesir is masculine but the female equivalent is Asynjur. The goddesses like Frigg are one of the Asynjur. This all relates to the Ansuz rune. Asatru is "faith of the Aesir". Now Frigg is also like the Celtic Goddess of land and the home, called Brigit. The Goddess is also called Brighid, "The Exalted One". The English word "bride" comes from the name of the Goddess Brigit. In Welsh myth Her name is Fraid. The Greek counterpart of Brigit and Frigg is Hestia. Brigantia is another form of Brigit and a Goddess of the British Isles, otherwise called Britannia. Frigg is a hearth goddess like Brigit and Hestia. A domestic Goddess of the home as well as queenly duties of land and energy. Frigg is "Goddess of Women", "Goddess of the Home", "Goddess of Motherhood", "Mother Goddess of Women" and "Goddess of Hearth" = Frigg.  

Thor: Everyone knows that the name Thor is cognate to Thunar, Thurisaz, Thunraz and Thonoraz. The day of the week "Thursday" uses His name and Thor means Thunder. Thor is a thunder gods. Thor the thunderer. The other Indo-European thunder gods are Taran (Gaulish), Tuireann (Irish), Tunder (Persian) and Donar (German), Peron (Slavic), Indra (Hindu) and Verethragna (Zoroastrian). The name "Thor" is exactly what thunder is. Thunder is from an Indo European word to say "Tene" meaning to echo loud and resounding noise. The Sanskrit word Tanayitnuh is to thunder, or thundering. The earliest form of word for thunder had no "d" pronouncing letter. It was "Thunrian" and "Thunor". That means to be very loud. A branch of this name Thuner/Thunor and Thunder was a PIE root word Dyue to mean "lightening" and "sky" in the masculine form. Later on the earliest Greeks used the "d" and "t" letters to sound a "z" because "z" was pronounced like "ts" and "ds". That word Dyue then turned into "Zeus". The Roman counterpart of Thor and Zeus is Jupiter and this means "Sky" and "Father". Ju, Dyeu, Zeus and Thor all come to mean the same. Also the name means great conqueror and king. "The Thunderer", "Thunder bolt wielder", "Thundering King", "King of the sky", "King of thunder" and "King of Storms" = Thor.

Hel: She is the goddess of the underworld but is also referenced as a ghastly giantess. She lives and rules a region named Helheim. She is also called Hella. There is Another lighter form of her is Holda and Holle, who are motherly figures. It's a name linked to light and fire. Hell is described as a fiery domain. She's linked to the afterlife, fire and caves or underground places. The PIE root word where Hel is from Kel, to mean hidden. It's also where the name "Helen" comes from. Helen of Troy is the torch bearer, the bright one and fire. The Greek word "Hel" means fire. By contrast, Helen of Troy is beautiful while Hel the goddess of the underworld is frightening. This is because of language, vowel and letters interfering. The earlier Helen of Troy wasn't a mortal woman but a goddess, connected with torches, underground and fire. "Helen's Fire" was what is now called "St Elmo's Fire". She was once considered to be quite scary. In Norse myth, Hel is one of three children. She has two "brothers" Fenrir and Jormungand, who were in monstrous form. In Greek myth, Helen's two brothers are the handsome "Dioscouri". That isn't to say these brothers are counterparts. Just that She too has twin brothers as part of a trio. All are related to secret chambers, torches, underground fires and fire. "Lady of Fire", "Goddess of the underworld", "Fire Goddess", "Fire bearing sorceress" and "Shining woman" = Hel.        

(More in Part 2).
The image is "Idun and the apples" by J. Doyle Penrose

Pretty and Punk

Punk, in it's truest form, is a movement that is anti-establishment. In the early stages of punk, starting in the late 1970's and dominant throughout the youth culture and pop world of the 1980's, Punk was a statement. It said "Fuck you" in music. Fuck you in fashion. Fuck you society. It's pretty much a "fuck you" and "fuck off" aim, poking fingers up at the rigid centuries old regime / civilization. The Sex Pistols were very much anti- this and that. When you think of Punk, you think of Mohican hairdos and ripped jeans with chains. This is because the young of the 70's and 80's were the first of a kind: Barbarians of the Nuclear Age. So with that, a different style happened within this sub culture: within punk. Even today, this subculture has been through a transformation, and awoken from slumber. Today punk has metamorphised into Emo and Scene.

Women in punk. Unlike the men, who were into politics and being anti-social, certain women in punk had a different take on it. Female punk has it's own form. Female punk has established it's own genre, perfumed with mysticism, magic and beauty. Punk males are the social misfits and the rebels. Female punks, who haven't been properly looked at deep enough, have a fairy tale streak. Let's take a look at female punk.

Siouxsie Sioux of the band Siouxsie and the Banshees made punk music about prettier subjects. Magical titled tracks such as "Playground Twist", "Spellbound", "Arabian Knights" and "Swimming Horses" remind me of stories by Angela Carter.

Poly Styrene of X-Ray Specs was considered quite an exotic punk frontgirl but she had made much more spiritualist music as a solo artiste. She did "Generation Indigo", "Gods and Goddesses" and "Flower Aeroplane" of an esoteric nature.

Other early punkettes like Cyndi Lauper, who looked like a cross between a punk and a ballerina, made hit records and albums. Of one "Sisters of Avalon" she said: "This one has a little bit of a story in it too because it's kind of the rites of passage of women. It has women symbols. I wanted to show the force of nature and the energy of the song. It's really wonderful... It's like you're making paintings and when you're the artist, as opposed to when I direct someone else, it's like performance art." Source.

Toyah Willcox, who used to looke like a fire demoness punk, made tracks "It's A Mystery" and "Thunder in the Mountains". Okay there's loads of female punk bands and superstars. I won't bore you by mentioning all of them. I'll get straight to the point. Female punk was very raw, angry and DIY. Today there are Punk Princesses such as Avril Lavigne and Audrey Kitching.

Most of all, what drew me to doing this post was because of a very significant event. Madonna (who was a punkess earlier on in her career, before she became the The Regina of pop), has been in the news again. She stuck up for a female punk band, called Pussy Riot, who were arrested by the Russian authorities for hooliganism but many feel they're political prisoners.

This is the changing face of punk. Female punk has evolved from being rough to beautiful. Punk is the new era. The punk movement is an evolutionary stage of human development, to destabilise the old system and establish a new civilisation, culture and spiritual awareness. This is how things all begin. Most people, certainly older generations, really hate punk. Why else? Punk is anti-establishment, that's why. What is anti-establishment? A movement to create a new world. When new civilisations begin, there's a period of Dark Ages first.The Romans feared the barbarians, who were inevitably the cause of their downfall.

The general look of punk girls in the 70's and 80's:

Today's punk girls of the 21st Century:

So what are Punk Girls about? What separates them from the hardcore "Fuck you" attitude of male punks? Well, female punks have always had their own style, and their own way of looking at the world. They see the world as a place to exploit and cherish, anarchy loves life. In a way girl punks are like the untamed. And also the leaderless, unstructured priestesses of the rebellious movement. Amid the chaos and aggression of punk men, is the calm, mysterious and spiritual punk girls. Females gather to form a sisterhood and there is a strong ferocious sisterhood within Punk.

This is girl punk: Girl punks are the Caryatids of the movement. Women in any movement serve to upholster the entire thing like stone and marble. Those beautiful female statues encircling the ruins at the Acropolis remind me of the women in subcultures, whether it be punk, metal, goth, whatever. Not sidekicks or groupies, punk women are just as much the movement. Punk women are the soul carriers of fire and water. 

Useful links of characters and names mentioned here:

Siouxsie Sioux
Avril Lavigne
Audrey Kitching
Toyah Willcox
Cyndi Lauper
Pussy Riot (a site dedicated to their freedom)
Madonna
Caryatids
Women in Punk 
Punk subculture

Golden Girl Project - Diao Chan

Diao Chan is a famous woman from ancient China. Considered one of the most beautiful women in ancient Chinese history. She's one of the historical and legendary Four Beauties of China. The other Four Great Beauties of ancient China are:
Xishi
Yang Guifei
Wang Zhaojun.
(I shall mention these other three 4 beauties of China in my future "Golden Girl Project" posts.)

Her name was Diao Chan, or Diaochan. She was possibly born in the year 161 CE (or Third Century, Late Eastern Han Dynesty). She lived in the Muzhi Village of the Shaanxi Province. This village is 3 km south-east of Xinzhou City.

Now first of all, this village has peach trees and apricot trees that don't blossom very much. This problem has been occuring since the birth of Diaochan. Few flowers grow as much as they used to. Yet once upon a time this region was pretty much fertile with natural garlands and hanging flowers decourating walls, arches and pillars. The trees there always used to give forth tons of fruit in ancient times. There is said to have been a link to Diao Chan with the sterility of plants.

The beauty of Diaochan was so incredible that she "eclipsed the moon" and "shamed the flowers".  The moon and flowers seem to be overwhelmed by this woman's luminous beauty. Her presence seemed to have this impact on the earth even after her death. Her grave site (named Diao Chan Cemetery) was also of recent interest too:

"the burial mound of Diaochan has been razed in catastrophes. Some ancient bricks, stone structural components, copper coins are often excavated from the site. It is said that they have relations with Diaochan." source 


Taken from Cultural China - "Legend has it that when Diao Chan paid offerings to the moon at midnight, Chang'e (the Chinese Moon Goddess) hurried to hide in clouds, for this beautiful lady made her feel inferior. The phrase “outshines the moon“ in the beauty-describing idiom “Beauty which outshines the moon and shames the flowers“ has Diao Chan as the very subject. This legend embodies in an exaggerated way Diao Chan’s beautiful appearance in the eyes of the Chinese people."

Out of the Four Great Beauties of China, Diaochan has few records about her life. She's become an almost legendary goddesslike woman who featured in a lot of action dramas and epics about ancient China. It's as if this woman had such remarkable power. Everyone respects her and loves her even to this day as she played a major role in Chinese history as well as inspired many over the centuries. A woman who was like a goddess, who effects the Earth near her presence, and continues to show her love, strength and beauty to generations. The woman Diao Chan has reached the West, as she comes as a quartet of four other beautiful historical women.      

Links:

The Four Beauties of China
More on Diao Chan
Cultural China 

Books:
Meng Fan Ren -"Diaochan's Biography"
Luo Guanzhong - "Romance of the Three Kingdoms"

The picture is of "Daio Chan" as she is portrayed in "Dynasty Warriors".