Author: Apollonius, Aristoxenus, Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, Empedocles, A.C. Gellius, Iamblichus, Pausanias, Plutarch, Porphyrius, Thomas Taylor
Publisher: Philaletheians UK
ISBN:
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 33
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Book Description
Pythagoras lured, flattered, and controlled animals by the power of his voice, even a bean-eating ox! For he enjoyed the same dominion over nature as Orpheus, possessor of the phorminx, symbol of the sevenfold mystery of initiation. He persuaded an ox to renounce eating beans by merely whispering in the animal’s ear, and a she-bear to give up eating human flesh. He also forced a white eagle to descend from the clouds, and subdued him by stroking him gently with the hand, and by talking to him. The Samian Philosopher exhorted his disciples to abstain from beans on account of several different reasons. The rationale for this proscription is explained from eight different perspectives: 1. A physiological explanation: Fava beans produce flatulence, which is disturbing to those who seek mental calm, particularly before sleep. 2. A pathological explanation: Beans may cause acute haemolytic anaemia in genetically predisposed individuals. 3. A political explanation: The ban of beans was meant to curb the itch for power and profit associated with public office. 4. An unclean explanation: As beans were slang for testicles, Empedocles perpetuated their prohibition to temper sexual pursuits. 5. A mystical explanation: Aristotle believed that the reason for the ban is because beans bind souls to earth. 6. A biochemical explanation: The high nitrogen contents of beans makes their protein border on the animal kingdom. 7. An esoteric explanation: Their magnetism dulls the inner man and stifles the psychic man, says Blavatsky. 8. An etymological explanation: The name of the bean itself gives away the true reason for its notable ban by the Samian Master. Truth is wiser than the wise. The antipathy that sometimes exists even among kindred substances is clearly demonstrated in the case of the Mexican pomegranate. Milo of Croton holds the pomegranate or matter tightly in one hand, while extending the other in prayer to the goddess of matter. The difference between the bells of the heathen worshippers, and the bells and pomegranates of the Jewish worship is also explained. The old Athenians loved beans so much that they even worshipped a Bean-Man. But those initiated to the Eleusinian Mysteries were ordered to abstain from domestic birds, fishes, beans, pomegranates, and apples, says Porphyry. Claims that Pythagoras was not a strict vegetarian are counterbalanced by Apollonius Tyanaeus: Counterpoise 1. The story of the fishermen as retold by Porphyry suggests that Pythagoras absolutely abstained from fish. Counterpoise 2. Eudoxus maintains that Pythagoras not only abstained from animal flesh, he also kept clear of butchers and hunters. Counterpoise 3. Apollonius of Tyana, more Pythagorean than Pythagoras himself, has always maintained his purity by shunning animal flesh as well as animal clothing. Counterpoise 4. Following Pythagoras’ example, Apollonius sacrificed a bull made out of frankincense. Counterpoise 5. Noting that men and beans arose out of putrefaction, Pythagoras forbid the consumption of beans as well as of human flesh. Counterpoise 6. Five centuries later, the Cappadocian Adept sternly rebuked the gladiatorial barbarities of the Athenians that were taking place in the Theatre of Dionysus Eleuthereus on the southern slope of their Acropolis. Counterpoise 7. He provided evidence of the utter futility of human sacrifices and of cocks, pigs, and bulls being unworthy vehicles of divination. The ban of beans is far older than Pythagoras, as evidenced by the Orphic Hymn to Earth, where the sacrificer is ordered to fumigate from every kind of seed, except beans and aromatics.
Author: Frederick J. Simoons
Publisher: Univ of Wisconsin Press
ISBN: 9780299159047
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 596
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Book Description
This study examines plants associated with ritual purity, fertility, prosperity and life, and plants associated with ritual impurity, sickness, ill fate and death. It provides detail from history, ethnography, religious studies, classics, folklore, ethnobotany and medicine.
Author: Brian L. Silver
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0198027699
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 553
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Book Description
From the revolutionary discoveries of Galileo and Newton to the mind-bending theories of Einstein and Heisenberg, from plate tectonics to particle physics, from the origin of life to universal entropy, and from biology to cosmology, here is a sweeping, readable, and dynamic account of the whole of Western science. In the approachable manner and method of Stephen Jay Gould and Carl Sagan, the late Brian L. Silver translates our most important, and often most obscure, scientific developments into a vernacular that is not only accessible and illuminating but also enjoyable. Silver makes his comprehensive case with much clarity and insight; his book aptly locates science as the apex of human reason, and reason as our best path to the truth. For all readers curious about--or else perhaps intimidated by--what Silver calls "the scientific campaign up to now" in his Preface, The Ascent of Science will be fresh, vivid, and fascinating reading.
Author: Ken Albala
Publisher: Berg
ISBN: 1845204301
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 241
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Book Description
A lively global history of the bean reveals the lesser-known controversies attributed to the ubiquitous legume, from Pythagoras's opinion that the bean was the seat of the soul to St. Jerome's forbiddance of their consumption by nuns because of his belief about the connections between beans and sin. 10,000 first printing.
Author: Frederick J. Simoons
Publisher: Univ of Wisconsin Press
ISBN: 9780299142544
Category : Cooking
Languages : en
Pages : 568
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Book Description
Examines the use and avoidance of flesh foods, including beef, pork, chicken, and eggs, camel, dog, horse, and fish, from antiquity to the present day. Simoons finds that the recurrent theme of maintaining ritual purity, good health, and well-being underlies diet habits. He emphasizes that only a full range of factors can explain eating patterns, and stresses the interplay of religious, moral, hygienic, ecological, and economic factors in the context of human culture. From publisher description.
Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Occultism
Languages : en
Pages : 450
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Book Description
Author: Vicki León
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1620402971
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 338
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Book Description
In How to Mellify a Corpse, Vicki León brings her particular hybrid of history and humor to the entwined subjects of science and superstition in the ancient world, from Athens and Rome to Mesopotamia, the Holy Land, Egypt, and Carthage. León covers subjects as diverse as astronomy and astrology, philosophy and practicalities of life and death (including the titular ancient method of embalming), and ancient mechanical engineering. How to Mellify a Corpse of course invokes legendary thinkers (Pythagoras and his discoveries in math and music, Aristotle's books on politics and philosophy, and Archimedes' "Eureka" moment), but it also delves deeply into the lives of everyday people, their understanding and beliefs. A feast for the curious mind, How to Mellify a Corpse is not only for those with an interest in the experimental: it's for anyone who's inspired by the imagination and ingenuity humanity uses to understand our world.
Author: Ross Leckie
Publisher: Canelo + ORM
ISBN: 1788638638
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 491
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Book Description
The thrilling story of the greatest general in Roman history. In the name of Rome, Scipio Africanus conquered the hard-won empires of Carthage and of Alexander the Great. Now beset in his old age by the menacing political movements of Cato, Scipio details the epic story of his life, from the earliest days of his education, to the great battles he won in service to his home. Yet all the strands of his remarkable tale are anchored, flowing from and towards the confrontation between him and his great rival, his one and only equal... Hannibal. This novel of love and betrayal recreates the life and times of a military genius who discovers he is only a man, and is perfect for fans of Simon Scarrow, Ben Kane and I, Claudius. Praise for Ross Leckie ‘Leckie writes unflinchingly of this world of blood, battle and atrocity’ Sunday Telegraph ‘By turns lucid, enlightening and thrilling, this is the historical novel at its best’ Historical Novel Society ‘Masterful ... even better than Hannibal’ Allan Massie
Author: Patricia Telesco
Publisher: Citadel Press
ISBN: 9780806526706
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 308
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Book Description
Meals can be more than a time for simply filling one's stomach. With The Kitchen Witch Companion, pagans can satisfy the spirit too. With delectable recipes for love (Lusty Lobster, Enchantment Pork with Mango) and health (Plum Dandy Sauce) to the history and lore of spiritual work at the grill, this is much more than just a cookbook. Combining alchemy with culinary expertise, telesco invites readers to unleash the potential for positive energy, serenity and good fortune in every dish.
Author: Brian G. Chilton
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1666762709
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 215
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Book Description
Will heaven be boring? What will God and heaven look like? Will I enjoy heaven? Are animals in heaven? These questions, among others, often enter the hearts and minds of people envisioning their final heavenly home. Often, theologians and pastors have placed unnecessary restrictions on heaven, whereas others have claimed that heaven should not be discussed because of so many uncertainties. But is this helpful? Furthermore, is it even biblical? In the book Conversations about Heaven, Dr. Brian Chilton reflects on a conversation he had with a lady from Huntsville Baptist Church who asked some of the most challenging questions he ever received. They both discovered that if God is the greatest possible being and heaven is God's greatest gift, then heaven is a place that is far greater than anything ever imagined. Conversations about Heaven challenges you to vastly expand your thoughts on heaven, as heaven will far exceed even our greatest imaginations, and it encourages you to regularly reflect on the great things that lie ahead in your heavenly home.
