CHESMAYNE
Florescence
Van Gogh Irises jigsaw puzzle. A beautiful work
of art in a 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle. “Irises” is one of
Van Gogh’s most-loved works. Finished
size is 26.5” x 17.4”. Made in
The opening set of moves (beginning to flower). Many floral symbols exist ie,
01 The rose is an
ancient and universal symbol used in many traditions. It represents pain (thorn) and beauty
(flower). Adonis Flower: a rose, once white, but coloured red by the blood of Aphrodite when pricked by a thorn while rushing to help the fallen Adonis. Symbol of crowning
achievement (blossom),
feminine beauty. Flowers and butterflies (short lived). Ikebana (
02 The ‘Virgin Mary’ is often called the ‘Rose of Heaven’.
03 The white lily
represents purity (the flower of the annunciation). Shakespeare (KI John): To gild refined gold, to paint the lily, to throw a perfume on the violet (IV.2).
04 A is laurel is the wreath of triumph/victory - evergreen (symbol of immortality) and the crown of martyrdom in Christianity.
Saj: the Indian laurel - Arabian Nights: “Its door was of saj, adorned with brilliant gold”.
05 The Iris is the
symbol of the Greek goddess ‘Iris’ (meaning rainbow). She is the female messenger of the gods (usually shown winged and bearing a herald’s
staff).
06 The name
‘daffodil’ is a corruption of ‘asphodel’ (a plant of the lily family),
associated with death (planted on graves) and the underworld in Greek
legend. Legend says that it was once
white (Lent Lily). In
One of Monet’s finest works, the
tranquil Waterlilies makes a
perfect jigsaw puzzle - what a great idea for unwinding at the end of a
stressful day! Also makes a lovely
gift. 1,000 pieces. Made in
07 The flower of
KIs (Latin: flos regum): KI
Arthur.
08 Hawthorn: symbol
of ‘Good Hope’ (in the language of flowers).
Athenian girls crowned themselves with hawthorn flowers at
weddings. Richard III’s crown was
recovered from a hawthorn bush and used as his device.
09 Lotus: water lily
which closes its flower in the evening and used in many temples. Lakshmi: Hindu goddess of beauty (symbol of
the lotus). Eight petalled. Brahma and Buddha are shown on a lotus leaf. ‘Mani padme’ [‘the jewel in the
lotus’].
Vincent
Van Gogh’s Vase With Sunflowers
is depicted here on a lovely 750-piece jigsaw puzzle by Piatnik of
Hail to the Jewel
in the Lotus
(Translation of the Tibetan mantra -
The lotus flower
is one of the most ancient and deepest symbols of our planet.
The lotus flower grows in muddy
water and rises above the surface to bloom with remarkable beauty. At night the flower closes and sinks
underwater, at dawn it rises and opens again. Untouched by the impurity, lotus
symbolizes the purity of heart and mind.
The lotus flower represents long life, health, honor and good luck.
The Egyptian
Lotus flower symbol was called Sesen
in the Egyptian language. In the Egyptian mythology the lotus flower is a
symbol of the sun, of creation and rebirth.
In the East, the lotus flower is viewed as a symbol of
spiritual unfoldment. The lotus has its
roots in earthly mud, but as it grows upward in aspiration toward the light,
its petals open out in a beautiful flower.
Om Mani Padme Hum, meaning, “Hail to the Jewel in the Lotus” is the
sacred mantra of the Tibetans.
The Christian alternative to the lotus is the white lily
which, relating to Mary as queen of heaven, signifies both fertility and
purity. Traditionally the Archangel
Gabriel carries the lily of the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary. “Blessed are the pure in heart,” said Jesus,
“for they shall see God.” The teachings
of the Galilean Master and those of
The Indian Lotus flower symbolizes divinity, fertility,
wealth, knowledge and enlightenment. It is associated with the goddess of
wealth, Maha Lakshmi, who brings prosperity, purity and generosity. She sits on a fully blossomed lotus flower,
symbolizing purity, beauty and everything that is good.
Symbols are a means of bringing subtle, inner realities
to a focus in outward expression. Within the fundamental unity of
consciousness, certain symbols, such as the lotus lifting itself in purity
above the muddy water, possess universal relevance and power. David’s Lotus jewelry collection contains the
Lotus Ring and lotus earrings with different stones.
“Life flows within you and without
you”
The lotus ring contains the
lotus flower symbol on both sides of the ring.
The Hebrew engraving translation is: “Life flows within and without you”. This sentence holds the secret of unification
with the One. When our false Ego
dissolves, we enter the state of unification with the whole - hence life flows
within you and without you. The sentence
is taken from a song by Swami Kriyananda:
“We were talking - about the
space between us all and the people -
Who hide themselves behind
a wall of illusion never glimpsing the truth
Then it’s far too late when
they pass away.
We were talking - about the
love we all could share
When we find it - to try
our best to hold it there - with our love
With our love we could save
the world - if they only knew
Try to realize it’s all
within yourself - no-one else can make you change
And to see you’re really
only very small
And life flows on within
you and without you.
We were talking - about the
love that’s gone so cold
And the people who gain the
world and lose their soul
They don’t know, they can’t
see - are you one of them?
When you’ve seen beyond
yourself
Then you may find peace of
mind is waiting there
And the time will come when
you see we are all one
And life flows on within
you and without you.”
Lotus flower: Symbol of Spiritual
Unfoldment
By Swami Kriyananda
Giovanni Villani
Born in
Giovanni, son of a humble family, is known to have been in
In 1335 Villani was declared bankrupt with the eminent banking family of Bardi,
the financial important family and was imprisoned. Villani regained his freedom only in
1346. Two years later Villani died
during the terrible plague [The Black Death, described by Boccaccio in his
Decamerone].
The Giovanni’s Nuova
Cronica covers the history of
We shall take into consideration the following reference to chess
Nuova Cronica
Book VIII, Chapter XII (33-40)
Free translation
(33)
During these times there came to
Comments on chess
It seems clear that the game of chess was held in high esteem in
The Ghibeline Count Guido Novello’s attendance of Buzzeca’s exhibition of chess
would suggest that the Count had more than a passing interest in the game. It is, moreover, probable that the Count
invited the Saracen Buzzeca to play chess in
When this
chess match took place?
According to Giovanni Villani the match took place ‘at the time in
which king Charles was crowned in
The name of Buzzeca is controversial.
Giovanni Villani in the
first version called this Saracen ‘BUZZECCA’, in the second version
‘BUZZECA’.
In the May/June 1996 issue of NOSTalgia, the NOST
bulletin, Kerry Handscomb writes about this Shogi
variant which he calls Microshogi. He has played the game in 1981, and assumes
that it was invented by the great shogi player Oyama Yasuharu. (Oyama Yasaharu died several years ago, at
an age of approximately 60 years. He
was a top level Shogi player until he died.
He is the 15th “Eisei Meijin” (Eternal champion), and he was
the president of Japanese Shogi association.)
Wooden and plastic sets are (most probably) commercially sold in
The game is played on a board with five rows and four
columns, i.e., only 20 cells/squares. Each player has
only five pieces. Using a nice
promotion rule, still most of the Shogi pieces can play a role in this game (with only the dragon
king and dragon
horse - promoted
rook and bishop omitted). At the start
of the game, each player has a king, a bishop, a golden general, a silver general, and a pawn
[JP]. The opening setup
is as follows:
White:
King d1, Bishop c1, Golden General b1, Silver General a1, Pawn d2.
Black:
King a5, Bishop b5, Golden General c5, Silver General d5, Pawn a4.
In this game, pieces do not promote by reaching a certain
rank, but promote when they take another piece. Each time a piece takes a piece of the
opponent, it is reversed. At the other
side of the piece, another piece is shown:
Promotion
(which is in many cases more a degradation) is obligatory: every time a piece
takes another piece, it is reversed.
For instance, when a golden general takes a piece, it becomes a rook. When this rook takes a piece, it becomes
again a golden general, etc. All pieces
move in the same way as in Shogi (except that they do not promote in the
same way.) These promotion rules do not
hold for kings, i.e., when a king takes a piece, it just stays a king.
Pieces taken from the opponent are held in reserve, and
can be dropped on empty squares on the board, as in Shogi. There are some differences in the rules: one
may put any side of the piece up when dropping a piece, e.g., when one has
taken a silver general, one can decide to drop the piece as lance or as silver
general. One may drop a piece on a
square from where it can no longer move.
Pawns [JPs] may be dropped on columns that already contain another pawn
of the player (so, this restriction of Shogi is not in this game).
It is allowed to give mate with a pawn-drop (as with a drop with any other
piece).
Object is to
take the opponents king. Giving perpetual check
is forbidden.
Written by
Hans Bodlaender, with thanks to Katsutoshi Seki for information on Oyama
Yasuharu.