martes, abril 22, 2008
MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM
The Milwaukee Art Museum (MAM) is located on Lake Michigan in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The museum's history began in 1882 when the Milwaukee Museum of Fine Arts was founded. The museum dissolved six years later. In 1888, the Milwaukee Art Association was created by a group of German panorama artists and local businessmen; its first home was the Layton Art Gallery. In 1911, the Milwaukee Art Institute, another building constructed to hold other exhibitions and collections, was completed. The institute was built right next to the Layton Art Gallery. Alfred George Pelikan, who received his Masters in Fine Arts (MFA) from Columbia University, was the Director of the Milwaukee Art Institute from 1926 to 1942. The Milwaukee Art Center (now the Milwaukee Art Museum) was formed when the Milwaukee Art Institute and Layton Art Gallery merged their collections in 1957 and moved into a three-story building underneath the Eero Saarinen-desinged Milwaukee County War Memorial.
The MAM recently gained international recognition with the construction of the new white concrete Quadracci Pavilion, designed by Santiago Calatrava (his first American commission), which opened on May 4, 2001. The structure contains a moveable, wing-like brise soleil (pictured below) which opens up for a wingspan of 217 feet during the day, folding over the tall, arched structure at night or during inclement weather. The building has since become a symbol for the city of Milwaukee. The galleries themselves are contained in the MAM's older building, a 1957 Eero Saarinen commission (along with the Milwaukee County War Memorial) added to by Kahler, Slater, and Fitzhugh Scott of Milwaukee in 1975. The 1975 addition was commissioned by the Milwaukee Art Center in 1969 to make room for other exhibits and donations. The museum is home to over 25,000 works of art.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee_Art_Museum
MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM - CHIHULY
Glass sculpture by Dale Chihuly at the Milwaukee Art Museum
FISHING IN OLD SHANGHAI
Street painting has been recorded throughout Europe since the 16th century. Street painters in Italy are called madonnari (pronounced: mah-doan-are-ee with madonnaro being the singular form) because they often created pictures representing the Madonna.
Historically, madonnari were itinerant artists who lived a life of travel and freedom. Aware of the festival and holy days (holidays) in each province and town, they traveled to join in the festivities. They created images in public squares and in front of the local church using bits of broken roof tiles, charcoal, and some white chalk. Passersby would often leave a bit of bread or olive oil for the artist along with an occasional coin. The artists were often commissioned to create votos and ex-votos, and after the festivities or with the first rain, both the painting and the painter would vanish.
For centuries madonnari were folk artists, reproducing simple images with crude materials. World War II disrupted their itinerant tradition and reduced their numbers. In 1972 the first International Street Painting Competition was held in Grazie di Curtatone, Italy. The purpose of the competition was to record and publicize the work of those considered to be the last practitioners of this traditional art form. The oldest of the painters were already in their 90s. Over the years, the competition has drawn younger painters and larger crowds. The festival remains popular and street painting festivals around the world are modeled on the event. The 1972 festival resulted in national recognition of the validity of the art form by the Superintendent of Culture. This recognition caused a whole new generation of street painters to emerge. Within a decade these artists were using high quality commercial and handmade pastels to create copies of well known masterpieces.
In 1982 Kurt Wenner an American artist, began street painting in Rome, Italy and by 1983 he had developed a new art form known as anamorphic or 3-dimensional street painting. In 1984 his unique invention was documented by National Geographic in their award winning film "Masterpieces In Chalk". In this same year he won the title of Master Street Painter at the Grazie festival and in 1985 he created the first 3-dimensional street painting in the US at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.
In 1987, Master Street Painters Kurt Wenner and Manfred Stader introduced the art of street painting to the Old Mission Santa Barbara, California. This was the first of numerous events throughout the United States that are modeled on the Italian festival at Grazie di Curtatone. Since this early introduction both traditional and 3-dimensional street painting have spread throughout the world. The innovative appeal of 3-dimensional street art has inspired many artists such as Julian Beever and Gary Palmer.
OP-ART-AUSSTELLUNG / OP-ART-EXHIBITION - FRANKFURT 2007
Op art, also known as optical art, is a genre of visual art, especially painting, that makes use of optical illusions. Op art is also known as geometric abstraction and hard-edge abstraction, although the preferred term for it is perceptual abstraction.
"Optical Art is a method of painting concerning the interaction between illusion and picture plane, between understanding and seeing."[1] Op art works are abstract, with many of the better known pieces made in only black and white. When the viewer looks at them, the impression is given of movement, hidden images, flashing and vibration, patterns, or alternatively, of swelling or warping.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_art
lunes, abril 21, 2008
A LUCID DREAM
A lucid dream, also known as a conscious dream, is a dream in which the person is aware that he or she is dreaming while the dream is in progress. During lucid dreams, it is possible to exert conscious control over the dream characters and environment, as well as to perform otherwise physically impossible feats. Lucid dreams can be extremely real and vivid depending on a person's level of self-awareness during the lucid dream.
AN ARTIST IS BORN...
"He who works with his hands is a laborer.
He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman.
He who works with his hands, his head and his heart is an artist."
- St. Francis of Assisi, Monk, Philosopher, 1182 - 1226
sábado, abril 19, 2008
Z A P P A
Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American composer, musician, and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa established himself as a prolific and highly distinctive composer, electric guitar player and band leader. He worked in various different musical genres and wrote music for rock bands, jazz ensembles, synthesizers and symphony orchestra, as well as musique concrète works constructed from pre-recorded, synthesized or sampled sources. In addition to his music recordings, he created feature-length and short films, music videos, and album covers.
Although he only occasionally achieved major commercial success, he maintained a highly productive career that encompassed composing, recording, touring, producing and merchandising his own and others' music. Zappa self-produced almost every one of the more than sixty albums he released with the Mothers of Invention or as a solo artist. He received multiple Grammy nominations and won for Best Rock Instrumental Performance in 1988 for the album Jazz from Hell. Zappa was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995, and received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997. In 2005, his 1968 album with the Mothers of Invention, We're Only in It for the Money, was inducted into the United States National Recording Preservation Board's National Recording Registry. The same year, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him #71 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. In 2007, his birthtown Baltimore declared August 9 official "Frank Zappa Day" in his honor.
Politically, Zappa was a self-proclaimed "practical conservative", an avowed supporter of capitalism and independent business. He was also a strident critic of mainstream education and organized religion. Zappa was a forthright and passionate advocate for freedom of speech and the abolition of censorship, and his work embodied his skeptical view of established political processes and structures. Although many assumed that he used drugs like many musicians of the time, Zappa strongly opposed recreational drug use. Zappa was married to Kathryn J. "Kay" Sherman (1960–1964; no children), and then in 1967 to Adelaide Gail Sloatman, with whom he remained until his death in December 1993 of prostate cancer. They had four children: Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet Emuukha Rodan and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen. Gail Zappa handles the businesses of her late husband under the company name the Zappa Family Trust.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Zappa
HAKA
A haka is a traditional dance form of the Māori of New Zealand. It is a posture dance with shouted accompaniment, performed by a group.
The use of haka in popular culture is a growing phenomenon, especially in New Zealand. Traditionally, haka were used only in Māori cultural contexts, but today haka are used in a wide range of public occasions to impart a sense of importance of the event.
Many haka are performed exclusively by men which has sometimes led to the misconception that only men may perform haka. However there are a minority of haka which are performed predominantly by women, one of the most well-known women's haka being "Ka Panapana". In many haka though, the female role, if any, is limited to providing support by singing in the background.
Women were strongly involved in the traditional origin of haka. According to Māori mythology, the sun god, Tama-nui-te-rā, had two wives, the Summer maid, Hine-raumati, and the Winter maid, Hine-takurua. The child of Tama-nui-te-ra and Hine-raumati, Tāne-rore is credited with the origin of the dance.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haka
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
The culture of Papua New Guinea is multi-faceted and complex. It is estimated that more than a thousand different cultural groups exist in PNG. Because of this diversity, many different styles of cultural expression have emerged; each group has created its own expressive forms in art, dance, weaponry, costumes, singing, music, architecture and much more.
Most of these different cultural groups have their own language. People typically live in villages that rely on subsistence farming. In some areas people hunt and collect wild plants (such as yam roots) to supplement their diets. Those who become skilled at hunting, farming and fishing earn a great deal of respect.
On the Sepik river, there is a famous tradition of wood carving, often in the form of plants or animals, representing ancestor spirits.
Sea shells are no longer the currency of Papua New Guinea, as they were in some regions — sea shells were abolished as currency in 1933. However, this heritage is still present in local customs; in some cultures, to get a bride, a groom must bring a certain number of golden-edged clam shells[13] as a bride price. In other regions, bride price is paid in lengths of shell money, pigs, cassowaries or cash; elsewhere, bride price is unknown and it is brides who must pay dowry.
People of the highlands engage in colourful local rituals that are called "sing sings". They paint themselves, and dress up with feathers, pearls and animal skins to represent birds, trees or mountain spirits. Sometimes an important event, such as a legendary battle, is enacted at such a musical festival.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papua_New_Guinea#Culture
ENLIGHTENMENT
The site of the Bodhi tree at Bodhigaya is, according to the Buddhist commentarial scriptures, the same for all Buddhas. According to the Jatakas, it forms the navel of the earth, and no other place can support the weight of the Buddha's attainment.
When no Bodhi tree grows at the site, the Bodhimanda (ground round the Bodhi-tree), for a distance of one royal karīsa, is devoid of all plants, even of any blade of grass, and is quite smooth, spread with sand like a silver plate, while all around it are grass, creepers and trees. None can travel in the air immediately above it, not even Sakka.
When the world is destroyed at the end of a kalpa, the Bodhimanda is the last spot to disappear; when the world emerges into existence again, it is the first to appear. A lotus springs there bringing it into view and if during the kappa thus begun a Buddha will be born, the lotus puts forth flowers, according to the number of Buddhas.
In the case of Gautama Buddha, his Bodhi tree sprang up on the day he was born.
Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya, at the place where Buddha reached enlightenment 2 500 years ago. It is 52 meters high.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahabodhi_Temple
viernes, abril 18, 2008
A TRIBUTE TO NIKOLA TESLA
a tribute to nikola tesla, originalmente cargada por pixelkuh.
Nikola Tesla (Serbian Cyrillic: Никола Тесла) (10 July 1856 – 7 January 1943) was a Serbian American inventor, physicist, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer. Born in Smiljan, Croatia , Austro Hungarian Empire, he was an ethnic Serb subject of the Austrian Empire and later became an American citizen.[2] Tesla was born to a Serbian family in the village of Smiljan near Gospić, in the Lika region in Krajina, Croatia (then part of the Austrian Empire). According to legend, he was born precisely at midnight during an electrical storm.Tesla is best known for his many revolutionary contributions to the discipline of electricity and magnetism in the late 19th and early 20th century. Tesla's patents and theoretical work formed the basis of modern alternating current electric power (AC) systems, including the polyphase power distribution systems and the AC motor, with which he helped usher in the Second Industrial Revolution. Contemporary biographers of Tesla have deemed him "The Father Of Physics" and "the man who invented the twentieth century"[3] and "the patron saint of modern electricity.
In April of 1887, Tesla began investigating what would later be called X-rays using his own single node vacuum tubes (similar to his patent #514,170). This device differed from other early X-ray tubes in that they had no target electrode. The modern term for the phenomenon produced by this device is bremsstrahlung (or braking radiation). We now know that this device operated by emitting electrons from the single electrode through a combination of field emission and thermionic emission. Once liberated, electrons are strongly repelled by the high electric field near the electrode during negative voltage peaks from the oscillating HV output of the Tesla Coil, generating X-rays as they collide with the glass envelope. He also used Geissler tubes. By 1892, Tesla became aware of what Wilhelm Röntgen later identified as effects of X-rays.
In the early research, Tesla devised several experimental setups to produce X-rays. Tesla held that, with his circuits, the "instrument will [... enable one to] generate Roentgen rays of much greater power than obtainable with ordinary apparatus." He also commented on the hazards of working with his circuit and single node X-ray producing devices. Of his many notes in the early investigation of this phenomenon, he attributed the skin damage to various causes. One of the options for the cause, which is not in conformity with conventional x-ray production, was that the ozone generated rather than the radiation was responsible. He early on stated,
| “ | As to the hurtful actions on the skin [...] I note that they have been misinterpreted [...] They are not due to the Roentgen rays, but merely to the ozone generated in contact with the skin. Nitrous acid may also be responsible, but to a small extent. | |
| —Electrical Review, 30 November 1895 | ||
Tesla's experiments were confirmed by others. Tesla later stated,
| “ | [...] I have not noted injuries which could be traced directly to this cause, though on several occasions burns were produced in all respects similar to those which were later observed and attributed to the Roentgen rays. This view is seemingly being abandoned, having not been substantiated by experimental facts, and so also is the notion that these rays are transverse vibrations. | ” |
| —High frequency oscillators for electro-therapeutic and other purposes, 1899 | ||
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla
jueves, abril 17, 2008
FRACTAL
The oak in the original Palo Alto Medical Foundation's courtyard.
A fractal is generally "a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be subdivided into parts, each of which is (at least approximately) a reduced-size copy of the whole," a property called self-similarity. The term was coined by Benoît Mandelbrot in 1975 and was derived from the Latin fractus meaning "broken" or "fractured."
A fractal often has the following features:
- It has a fine structure at arbitrarily small scales.
- It is too irregular to be easily described in traditional Euclidean geometric language.
- It is self-similar (at least approximately or stochastically).
- It has a Hausdorff dimension which is greater than its topological dimension (although this requirement is not met by space-filling curves such as the Hilbert curve).
- It has a simple and recursive definition.
Cargado por jay_kilifi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fractal
MASQUERADE
- The carnival in Venice was first recorded in 1268. The subversive nature of the festival is reflected in the many laws created over the centuries in Italy attempting to restrict celebrations and often banning the wearing of masks.
Masks have always been a central feature of the Venetian carnival; traditionally people were allowed to wear them between the festival of Santo Stefano (St. Stephen's Day, December 26) at the start of the carnival season and midnight of Shrove Tuesday. As masks were also allowed during Ascension and from October 5 to Christmas, people could spend a large proportion of the year in disguise. Mask makers (mascareri) enjoyed a special position in society, with their own laws and their own guild.
In 1797 Venice became part of the Austrian-held Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia when Napoleon signed the Treaty of Campo Formio. The Austrians took control of the city on January 18, 1798 and it fell into a decline which brought carnival celebrations to a halt for many years. It was not until a modern mask shop was founded in the 1970s that a revival of old traditions began.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnival
DE COLOR AZAFRÁN II
El color de la túnica de los monjes budistas expresa unión con el Universo.
miércoles, abril 16, 2008
HUICHOL MAN MASK
An orange colored eagle tops the forehead of this beaded mask made by a Huichol artist of Mexico City.
ALEBRIJE
An alebrije (pronounced [aleˈβɾihe]) is a brightly-colored Mexican folk art sculptures of fantastical animal-like creatures. While Pedro Linares first used the term to describe his papier mache creations, it is now commonly used in reference to the Oaxacan woodcarvings popularized by Manuel Jimenez.
Alebrije folk art has influenced the Oaxacan School of Art. For instance, the fine art Oaxacan painter Rodolfo Nieto employed the alebrijes style of fantastic colored animals in his art. Likewise, essences of alebrijes can be seen in Rufino Tamayo's work.
LION OF BUDDHA
Here is another example of the "Fu Dog" or "Lion of Buddha" outside of the Lama Temple in Beijing. It is said that their name comes from the Chinese word for Buddhism, "fojiao". They are also known as "Fu Lions", a homonym of the Chinese word for prosperity or luck ("fu").
As I noted before, male and female pairs are the usual in China. Here is the male version, with his paw over a ball that represents power. It is also said to represent the union of Heaven and Earth, and the whole of Buddhist Law. Some believe that the open mouths of these lions represent the mantric sounds of "ah" and "um".
They are said to represent the unity of Heaven and Earth, and act as guardians. Lions are not indigenous to China, and these mythical versions are thought to have been introduced to Han China as the Buddhist protector of the dharma.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion_of_Buddha
SYMMETRIC HARMONY
Iran / Isfahan
Jame' Abbasi Mosque مسجد جامع عباسي
I wish we could kept this harmony in all of our life ...
all of our manner ...
and all of our friendships !
MEMOIRS OF A BEDOUIN
The Bedouins were divided into related tribes. These tribes were organized on several levels - a widely quoted Bedouin saying is "I against my brothers, I and my brothers against my cousins, I and my brothers and my cousins against the world." The saying signifies a hierarchy of loyalties based on closeness of kinship that runs from the nuclear family through the lineage, the tribe, and even, in principle at least, to an entire ethnic or linguistic group (which is perceived to have a kinship basis). Disputes are settled, interests are pursued, and justice and order are maintained by means of this organizational framework, according to an ethic of self-help and collective responsibility *(Andersen 14). The individual family unit (known as a tent or bayt) typically consisted of three or four adults (a married couple plus siblings or parents) and any number of children, and would focus on semi-nomadic pastoralism, migrating throughout the year following water and plant resources. More powerful tribes traditionally herded camels, while others herded sheep or goats.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedouin
MACRO DRAGONFLY
In Japan dragonflies are symbols of courage, strength, and happiness, and they often appear in art and literature, especially haiku. In ancient mythology, Japan was known as Akitsushima, which means "Land of the Dragonflies". The love for dragonflies is reflected by the fact that there are traditional names for almost all of the 200 species of dragonflies found in and around Japan.[7] Japanese children catch large dragonflies as a game, using a hair with a small pebble tied to each end, which they throw into the air. The dragonfly mistakes the pebbles for prey, gets tangled in the hair, and is dragged to the ground by the weight.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_fly
DRAGONFLY "TAMBARORAY"
For some Native American tribes they represent swiftness and activity, and for the Navajo they symbolize pure water. Dragonflies are a common motif in Zuni pottery; stylized as a double-barred cross, they appear in Hopi rock art and on Pueblo necklaces. It is said in some Native American beliefs that dragonflies are a symbol of renewal after a time of great hardship.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_fly
KOREAN BELL OF FRIENDSHIP
This massive and intricately-decorated bell and pavilion was donated in 1976 to the people of Los Angeles by the people of the Republic of Korea to celebrate the bicentennial of the U.S. independence, honor veterans of the Korean War, and to consolidate traditional friendship between the two countries. The bell is patterned after the Bronze Bell of King Songdok, which was cast in 771 A.D. and is still on view in South Korea today.
观音像 QUAN YIN
The term Quan Yin Method was coined in the 1985 by the spiritual teacher, Supreme Master Ching Hai, to describe the type of meditation that she herself practices and teaches. The spelling is an idiosyncratic romanisation of a Chinese term said to be in English translation: “contemplation of the sound vibration.”
Ching Hai advises people to learn properly in spiritual practice. She said, don’t just meditate alone or learn from a book, because the book doesn’t empower you; it doesn’t awaken the spiritual protection from God. So you might be prone to danger or all kinds of attack from different forces, good and bad, that are all coming because there’s no guard at the door. Some people are very sensitive souls, and they’re open. Their heart is open, their spiritual center is open, but they don’t know how to deal with or how to screen the different forces that come through the open gates.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quan_Yin_Method
J E W E L S - VARANASI
A little girl dressed up in a beautiful sari for the Sarasvati day. She was a bit shy and nervous...
During Vasant Panchami, a day for Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge and learning, all the kids are dressed up and don't go to school.
Sarasvati represents the free flow of wisdom and consciousness. She is the mother of the Vedas, and chants to her, called the 'Saraswati Vandana' often begin and end Vedic lessons.
Varanasi is a city of temples. Almost every road crossing has a nearby temple. Such small temples form the basis of daily local prayers and other rituals. But there are many large temples too, erected at different times through out the history of Varanasi.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varanasi
KING SQUID
Tales of giant squid have been common among mariners since ancient times, and may have led to the Norwegian legend of the kraken, a tentacled sea monster as large as an island capable of engulfing and sinking any ship. Japetus Steenstrup, the describer of Architeuthis, suggested a giant squid was the species described as a sea monk to the Danish king Christian III c.1550. The Lusca of the Caribbean and Scylla in Greek mythology may also derive from giant squid sightings. Eyewitness accounts of other sea monsters like the sea serpent are also thought to be mistaken interpretations of giant squid.
In early 2006, another giant squid, later named "Archie", was caught off the coast of the Falkland Islands by a trawler. It was 8.62 metres (28 ft) long and was sent to the Natural History Museum in London to be studied and preserved. It was put on display on March 1, 2006 at the Darwin Centre. The find of such a large, complete specimen is very rare, as most specimens are in a poor condition, having washed up dead on beaches or been retrieved from the stomach of dead sperm whales.
Researchers undertook a painstaking process to preserve the body. It was transported to England on ice aboard the trawler; then it was defrosted, which took about four days. The major difficulty was that thawing the thick mantle took much longer than the tentacles. To prevent the tentacles from rotting, scientists covered them in ice packs, and bathed the mantle in water. Then they injected the squid with a formol-saline solution to prevent rotting. The creature is now on show in a 9 metres (30 ft) long glass tank at the Darwin Centre of the Natural History Museum.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_squid
lunes, abril 14, 2008
A "POINT OF VIEW" ON THE RHIZOME
Outlining a Theory of General Creativity .. on a 'Pataphysical way
Entropy - Memory . Creativity -
Study of the day:
Each one of us is an artist ?
Each one of us is expressing the entire world ?
Each one of us is a monade ?
Each "self" is a "point of view" on the world, each "self" expresses the "world" from his own "point of view", in the sense that the "world" doen't exist out of the "points of view" that give it an expression. The "city" doesn't exist outside of all "points of view" on the city. It is a beautiful idea . . the city is all the "points of view" on the city. [...] Every "self" contains (wraps) the entire "World". . [...]. . For each of these "self", Leibniz who don't meet the too small subjective island of the res cogitans of Descartes, creates a concept to designate "each self" who thinks the entire possible world. Leibniz called him the "monad". Each "monad" expresses (wraps) the entire world.
(Gilles Deleuze - Cinéma - cours 41 du 17/05/1983 à PARIS 8)
MONADS
PURPLE AND CREAM DOUBLE MONAD AURORAS
viernes, abril 11, 2008
SHAKTI - GANESHA
Orissa, probably from Konarak
13th Century AD
This rare, five headed figure of Ganesha, son of Parvati, sits with his consort on his knee. She is the personification of the god's energy. below the foot of Ganesha is his vahana or vehicle - a rat. The legs of the throne are composed of a combined elephant and rampant lion motif; this is supported by a crouching figure.
(That is what the sign said - but I had problems spotting 5 heads!)
HINDU DEITIES
The Hindu religion speaks of many individual deities. Gods are called devas. Goddesses are called devīs. The various devas and devīs are personifications of various aspects of one and the same God (Ishvara). For instance, when a Hindu thinks of Ishvara as the giver of knowledge and learning, that aspect of Ishvara is personified as the deity Saraswati. In the same manner, the deity Lakshmi personifies Ishvara as the giver of wealth and prosperity.This does not imply that Ishvara is the Lord of all the other deities. Ishvara is just the name used to refer to the personal God in general, when no particular deity is being referred to.
The devas (also called devatās) constitute an integral part of the colorful Hindu culture. These various forms of God are depicted in innumerable paintings, statues, murals, and scriptural stories that can be found in temples, homes, businesses, and other places. In Hinduism the scriptures recommend that for the satisfaction of a particular material desire a person may worship a particular deity. For example, shopkeepers frequently keep a statue or picture of the devi Lakshmi in their shops. The elephant-headed deva known as Ganesha is worshipped before commencing any undertaking, as he represents God's aspect as the remover of obstacles. Students and scholars may propitiate Saraswati, the devi of learning, before taking an exam or giving a lecture.
The devas (also called devatās) constitute an integral part of the colorful Hindu culture. These various forms of God are depicted in innumerable paintings, statues, murals, and scriptural stories that can be found in temples, homes, businesses, and other places. In Hinduism the scriptures recommend that for the satisfaction of a particular material desire a person may worship a particular deity. For example, shopkeepers frequently keep a statue or picture of the devi Lakshmi in their shops. The elephant-headed deva known as Ganesha is worshipped before commencing any undertaking, as he represents God's aspect as the remover of obstacles. Students and scholars may propitiate Saraswati, the devi of learning, before taking an exam or giving a lecture.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_deities
SHAKTI
Shakti meaning sacred force, power or energy is the Hindu concept or personification of the divine feminine aspect, sometimes referred to as 'The Divine Mother'. Shakti represents the active, dynamic principles of feminine power. In Shaktism, Shakti is worshiped as the Supreme Being. However, in other Hindu traditions, Shakti embodies the active energy and power of male deities (Purushas), such as Vishnu in Vaishnavism or Shiva in Shaivism. Vishnu's shakti counterpart is called Lakshmi, with Parvati being the female shakti of Shiva.
Cargado el 13 de julio, 2007 por Shadya_
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakti
VISHNU WITH HIS CONSORTS LAKSHMI AND SARASVATI
The Vishnu Sahasranama describes Vishnu as the All-Pervading essence of all beings, the master of and beyond the past, present and future, the creator and destroyer of all existences, one who supports, sustains and governs the Universe and originates and develops all elements within.
In the Puranas, Vishnu is described as being the color of clouds (dark-blue), four-armed, holding a lotus, mace, conch and chakra (wheel). Vishnu is also described in the Bhagavad Gita as having a 'Universal Form' (Vishvarupa) which is beyond the ordinary limits of human sense perception .
It is also within the Puranas that the information regarding Vishnu's avatars is given. Nine of these avatars, or 'incarnations' are described as having occurred in the past, with one still to happen at the end of Kali Yuga. The Bhagavad Gita mentions their purpose as being to rejuvenate Dharma and vanquish negative forces. In virtually all the Sanatana Dharma traditions, Vishnu is worshipped, either directly or through avatars such as Rama, Krishna, Varaha and Narasimha.
In the Trimurti, Vishnu is responsible for the maintenance or 'preservation' of the Universe, with the other roles of creation and destruction being under the care of Brahma and Shiva, respectively.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vishnu
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