Spiritual Symbols Research Articles

Logic Diagrams, Sacred Geometry and Neural Networks

In early modernity, one can find many spatial logic diagrams whose geometric forms share a family resemblance with religious art and symbols. The family resemblance these diagrams bear in form is often based on a vesica piscis or on a cross: Both logic diagrams and spiritual symbols focus on the intersection or conjunction of two or more entities, e.g. subject and predicate, on the one hand, or god and man, on the other. This paper deals with the development and function of logic diagrams, their analogy to religious art and symbols, and their modern application in artificial intelligence.

Rató, Spirit of Waterfalls

In “Rató, Spirit of Waterfalls,” Antonio Briceño celebrates the culture of the Pemon indigenous people in Venezuela. Indigenous peoples have rich connections to the land. The value of their traditional knowledge is beginning to be appreciated. But many indigenous peoples must battle outside interests that have different ambitions for their ancestral homes. Securing their land rights can help protect their livelihoods, their rich cultural heritage, and some of the most biodiverse locations in the world. In “Rató, Spirit of Waterfalls,” Antonio Briceño celebrates the culture of the Pemon indigenous people in Venezuela. Indigenous peoples have rich connections to the land. The value of their traditional knowledge is beginning to be appreciated. But many indigenous peoples must battle outside interests that have different ambitions for their ancestral homes. Securing their land rights can help protect their livelihoods, their rich cultural heritage, and some of the most biodiverse locations in the world. Antonio Briceño is a Venezuelan photographer and biologist whose work promotes the conservation of nature and indigenous cultures. In his dramatic body of work entitled “Gods of America,” Briceño creates dynamic portraits of indigenous people set against natural and cultural landscapes. Briceño melds images of primordial environments and spiritual leaders into visions that evoke the archetypes commonly found in human cultures throughout time. In each photograph, Briceño portrays a scene from the spiritual narrative of an indigenous culture. He presents his deified subject as the “owner” of a natural element or force, drawing attention to the stark difference between Western concepts of ownership and those of indigenous cultures. The indigenous “owners” do not exercise dominion over nature with the right to exploit it but rather are the humble guardians of the natural world, responsible for its stewardship. In these images, the owners are extensions of nature itself, spiritual symbols of the gifts of life. From a cascading waterfall to a headdress of fish, each of Briceño’s visual mythologies provides a glimpse into an aboriginal heritage in which life continues to unfold within the cathedral of nature. Artwork selection and curatorial statement provided by Art Works for Change. To learn more about this artist and his work, visit https://www.artworksforchange.org/portfolio/antonio-briceno/.

PERANAN MASJID DALAM PROSES ISLAMISASI MASYARAKAT ABANGAN: STUDI KASUS MASJID AL-YAQIN DUSUN TAMBAK RUJI

The mosque is not just become a spiritual symbol, especially for Muslims. But being a cultural symbol of the country even among Indonesian society. The significance of the role of the mosque does not necessarily make the mosque continues able to maintain eksitensinya in performing various functions, especially in the era of digitalization has the longer and grind the existence and role of the mosque. However, the prestige of the generous nature proficiency level applies only to the community of town with remarkable mobalitas while mosques perkampunngan or rural region still has a significant role in terms of both spiritual and social community. By karenya, this paper discusses the role of Al-Yaqin in the process of Islamization of society initially Hamlet Pond Trellis are Abangan, where a person’s beliefs about Islam, but the dominance kejawenya very thick. In addition, this paper also presented conflicts as a result of diadakanya process of Islamization.

THE SPIRITUAL AND CULTURAL SYMBOLS IN A MAHAYANA BUDDHIST TEMPLE ‘VIHARA LOTUS’ SURAKARTA

The symbols contained in a vihara is intentionally used to remind the people to something that is believed, both cultural and spiritual values. This article aims to analyze the meaning and value of spiritual and cultural symbols in Vihara Lotus Surakarta. This is a qualitative research. This article shows that (1) The meaning and value of spiritual symbols in Vihara Lotus can be found on the category of altar and statue which consist of ancestor altar, Amitabha Buddha Altar, Avalokitesvara Altar, Three Buddhas Alta, Si Mien Fo Altar, Maitreya Buddha, Si Da Tian Wang Statues, And Earth Gods. Then in category of Prayer tools consist of Ching/Gong, Muk Ie, He Che, and Tan Che. Those spiritual symbols have meaning and value in term of the Buddha teaching such as the Sigalovada sutta, sukhavati realm, reflection of Buddhas nature, concept of Tri Kaya, affection state, four nobles qualities, dharma wheel turning, awareness, equanimity concept, introspection, and catumaharajika realm. (2) Meaning and Value of Cultural Symbols in Vihara Lotus can be found on the category of altar and statue consists of Thian Kong Altar, Chinese Generals, Earth gods, and Horse statues. Then in plant and food category consist of soy bean, Candy and Cookie, cigarette, wine, Chinese evergreen, and pineapple. Those cultural symbols have meaning and value in term of Chinese tradition and habit, such as Tradition of Sky Praising, merits appreciation, Chinese mythology, traditional food, hope of better life, special service to idol, and hope of sustenance.

African Christianity: A Living and Vibrant Repository of Christian Faith – Part II

Africa has played a remarkable role in the formation and growth of Christian faith and culture, right from its infancy. The ancient nature of African Christianity has been substantiated in the first part of this article which tries to establish African Christianity as one of the pillars of faith in Christendom; a fact corroborated by its unique indigenous spiritual symbols, its traditional proverbs that resonate with Christian wisdom literature, and above all its liturgical innovations and vibrancy both in ancient times and post Vatican Council II. Hence the themes discussed are: African Jesus as an ‘Ancestor par excellence’; African liturgical heritage; the Church as Family of God; African proverbs, and African contribution to world Christianity. All this lends a particular stamp of identity and character to African Christianity, not as a replica of Western or Eastern Christianity, but as a unique and equal tradition, a contemporary repository of Christianity.

The symbolism of female images in the décor of Art Nouveau architectural structures

The purpose of the article is to determine the specificity of the symbolism of a female image in the decor of architectural constructions of the 1890s and 1910s in the context of regional features of the art of modernity. The methodology is based on the use of general scientific methods and principles of scientific knowledge: analytical, source-historical, historical and terminological. Scientific novelty. Аrt research of female images in architectural deco- ration is carried out, in accordance with the specificity of regional features of the style of the modernist; analyzed the symbolism of mascaron in the historical retrospective and revealed the specifics of their use by the artists of the Franco- Belgian art nouveau, the Viennese Secession, the German and Riga Jugendstil and the Russian Art Nouveau. Conclu- sions. Women's images of high reliefs and bas-reliefs, as the dominant décor of modernist architectural constructions, are mostly abstract, yet very mysterious, mysterious, as if they were creatures of parallel reality. Particularly widespread women's mascarons, the image of which contains a wide range of messages encoded in the deep symbolic style, em- bodying a powerful women's beginning. The peculiarity of the symbolism of women's images of the architectural deco- ration of modern art is distinguished according to the regional specificity of style – from the fatal woman, with the accentuation on her belonging to the mysterious and demonic forces of nature, to the symbol of purity and spirituality, reflecting feminine innocence and modesty.

Moderating Role of Self-compassion in Relation to Psychopathological Symptoms and God Attachment in Women With Breast Cancer

Background: In many of past studies, the role of God as an attachment figure in reducing psychopathological symptoms has strongly been confirmed. In an effort to account for the effectiveness of attachment to God in mitigating psychopathological symptoms in healthy people we came upon self-compassion as a potential mediating variable in this process. Hence, in the current research, we studied this relation in Iranian Muslim women diagnosed with breast cancer.
 Methods: A total of 360 Muslim women diagnosed with breast cancer were asked to fill the Attachment to God Inventory, Self-Compassion Scale, and Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale. Data were analyzed using path analysis method with AMOS 22.
 Results: The anxiety dimension of attachment to God was significantly correlated with the severity of anxiety, but the avoidance dimension had no direct effect on any of the symptoms. Also, the anxiety dimension was found to be positively correlated with depression and stress indirectly via self-compassion. However, in the case of the avoidance dimension, no such relationship was observed. As a result, attachment anxiety causes a decrease in self-compassion in this group of women, and this, in turn, results in more severe psychopathological symptoms like anxiety, stress, and depression.
 Conclusion: Considering the results of this study, we conclude that improvements in the mental health of Muslim women diagnosed with breast cancer are not exclusively achieved by attachment to material symbols. Rather, attachment to God as a spiritual symbol can have a great impact on the mental health of these women. In fact, secure attachment to God can help improve mental health through positive effects on self-compassion and should be considered as a treatment in psychological interventions.

Effect of Intensive Short-term Dynamic Psychotherapy on Emotional Expressiveness and Defense Mechanisms of Women With Breast Cancer

Background: In many of past studies, the role of God as an attachment figure in reducing psychopathological symptoms has strongly been confirmed. In an effort to account for the effectiveness of attachment to God in mitigating psychopathological symptoms in healthy people we came upon self-compassion as a potential mediating variable in this process. Hence, in the current research, we studied this relation in Iranian Muslim women diagnosed with breast cancer.
 Methods: A total of 360 Muslim women diagnosed with breast cancer were asked to fill the Attachment to God Inventory, Self-Compassion Scale, and Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale. Data were analyzed using path analysis method with AMOS 22.
 Results: The anxiety dimension of attachment to God was significantly correlated with the severity of anxiety, but the avoidance dimension had no direct effect on any of the symptoms. Also, the anxiety dimension was found to be positively correlated with depression and stress indirectly via self-compassion. However, in the case of the avoidance dimension, no such relationship was observed. As a result, attachment anxiety causes a decrease in self-compassion in this group of women, and this, in turn, results in more severe psychopathological symptoms like anxiety, stress, and depression.
 Conclusions: Considering the results of this study, we conclude that improvements in the mental health of Muslim women diagnosed with breast cancer are not exclusively achieved by attachment to material symbols. Rather, attachment to God as a spiritual symbol can have a great impact on the mental health of these women. In fact, secure attachment to God can help improve mental health through positive effects on self-compassion and should be considered as a treatment in psychological interventions.

In Tempore Belli: Crumb’s Black Angels and the Vietnam War

ABSTRACTCrumb describes “dark currents” and “musical vibrations from the surrounding world” of the Vietnam War as crucial to shaping Black Angels. Beyond its unearthly sound palette, Crumb’s work depicts the horrors of war through spiritual symbols that permeate the work, from its architecture to foundational motives. Secularization theory is useful for exploring the work’s historical precedents and identifying Crumb’s revolutionary surrealist poetics. A comparative analysis with Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time repositions Crumb’s Black Angels as part of a larger twentieth-century trend of embracing spirituality to understand, memorialize, and heal from the collective trauma of war.

Pentecostalising the Voice in Zambian Charismatic Church History: Men of God’s Expression of Spiritual Identities, 1990 to Present

The strides to historicise Pentecostalism in Zambia have attempted to account for the growth of Pentecostal and charismatic churches without delving into the prominent features of Pentecostalism that have been popularised over time. One such characteristic is the “spiritual voice” that has been associated with the Pentecostal “Men of God” (clergy) in contemporary Zambia. Hence, this article explores the use of the voice as the power of articulation, understood as a spiritual vocal gift, as an expression of spiritual identity among the “Men of God” using the identity theory as a lens in Zambian Pentecostal church history. This is deemed significant not only for contributing to the body of knowledge but also to underscore the neglected attribute of Pentecostal influence on Zambia’s religious landscape. An interpretivist case study was employed in which raw data (video of sermons and pastoral ministries) and documents were analysed and interpreted. It was established that these “Men of God” perceived “broken vocal cords” as spiritual vocal gifts. As such, the voice not only evoked the power of articulation to communicate the spiritual emotions, but was also used to appeal, attract, and satisfy congregants (religious marketing) through assuming a ministerial “identity.” The article argues that the history of Pentecostalism in Zambia could not be detached from the romanticisation of the voice as a symbol of spirituality, and an imprint of identity on the “Men of God.”

Joan’s of Arc Aria No. 7 from the opera "The Maid of Orleans" by P. Tchaikovsky: the spiritual symbolism of the canon of repentance when "trialed under the sign"

The article examines the spiritual symbols of the musical and sound structure of Joan’s Aria No. 7 " Forgive me, hills and native fields " from the opera "The Maid of Orleans" by P. Tchaikovsky. The subject of the study is the iconic expositional characteristics of the dramatic development of the image of the protagonist of the opera as a vividly representative historical and symbolic phenomenon, expressed through the centuries-old context of musical spiritual symbols. "Liturgy of John Chrysostom" and "The Maid of Orleans" were marked by a powerful creative core, bravely creating a new level of thinking, opening new opportunities for the Transfiguration. P. Tchaikovsky reflected deeply on the spiritual quality of the man. By the wisdom of the Gospel postulates, one can realize how indissolubly these two works have merged together: "Divine Liturgy" and the history of the Divine feat of the main heroine of the opera. The birth of a new spiritual quality in Tchaikovsky’s music was accompanied by a sufficiently strong resistance of the surrounding psychological field of belief and world outlook. The composer had been working on the opera for about 9 months, which is associatively comparable to the bearing and birth of his "spiritual child". The spiritual meaning of the genre canvas of Aria is liturgical which is the canon of repentance. Syncretism of symbols manifested in systems of semantic and genre assimilation is represented by rhetorical signs and baroque genres. The ostinato spiritual and psychological Credo of the personality of Joan of Arc is explained - 1) in her legendary 19-year-old life, a young peasant girl who could not read and write possessed the greatest gift of purity of thoughts and an unshakable faith in the Spiritual World, which governs the earth; 2) she had intuitive-hearted Mercy to her persecutors, enemies, executioners; 3) she subtly felt the highest signs and symbols that were inaccessible and incomprehensible to her surroundings and contemporaries; 4) Joan at her own and sole discretion considered the form, colors and meanings of her symbols – a white embroidered banner, a coat of arms with holy symbols and a sword that she used only to defend and repel the blows. We should pay attention to the fact that both the composer and the heroine of the the "font" of the spirit materializes. Hence, perhaps, the source of the inner potential of spirituality for the related and beloved female images in his works, embodied by the composer one after another – Tatiana and Joan, – being so distant historically and socially from one another are both so close to the great spiritual potential and victorious level of morality, invigorated by the naturalness of the free space of nature, the inner beauty and sincere kindness, concealing the heroic courage of female charm behind the delicate refinement, able to illuminate many generations of people with the centuries-old example to follow. The 18-year-old Joan at the moment of exhibiting the image in the first act of the opera is shown in the vital fullness of a thinking person, who can follow her Divine Principle. The dramaturgic line of Joan is a mono opera of Spirit in the whole opera. In the context of the analysis of the melody, there attracts attention the symbol of harmony of the "lyrics of light" with the intonations of the achieved through much suffering world of the loving heart – the rhetorical formula of the Baroque era - the figures of "pathopoija:" the excitement of passions " parrhesa "," relatio non harmonia ". In the melody of Aria, there is a tension that arises under another symbol, but does not go into it, but psychologically preserves the previous harmony through inclination to the main tonic. This symbol in music of different styles and creative interpretation in the article is defined as "trial under the sign" - powerful in its might, which originates from the environment of reflective knowledge of the Spirit. In the Aria melody, the symbol tirata is not associated, as is customary, with a "shot" or "lightning," but is a symbol of a sparkling spiritual instrument – a sword. Such is embodied in a rather rare image of St. Nicholas the Miracle-Worker, for example, on the icon in the Church of the Holy Trinity in the monastery of St. Iona in Kiev. Saint Nicholas is depicted with a mighty sword, passionately raised vertically upward in the name of protecting holy justice. The sword is also associated with the power of the spiritual thought-arrow, reflected in the symbols of the graphic hooked notation of Kievan Rus.

Joan’s of Arc Aria No. 7 from the opera "The Maid of Orleans" by P. Tchaikovsky: the spiritual symbolism of the canon of repentance when "trialed under the sign"

The article examines the spiritual symbols of the musical and sound structure of Joan’s Aria No. 7 " Forgive me, hills and native fields " from the opera "The Maid of Orleans" by P. Tchaikovsky. The subject of the study is the iconic expositional characteristics of the dramatic development of the image of the protagonist of the opera as a vividly representative historical and symbolic phenomenon, expressed through the centuries-old context of musical spiritual symbols. "Liturgy of John Chrysostom" and "The Maid of Orleans" were marked by a powerful creative core, bravely creating a new level of thinking, opening new opportunities for the Transfiguration. P. Tchaikovsky reflected deeply on the spiritual quality of the man. By the wisdom of the Gospel postulates, one can realize how indissolubly these two works have merged together: "Divine Liturgy" and the history of the Divine feat of the main heroine of the opera. The birth of a new spiritual quality in Tchaikovsky’s music was accompanied by a sufficiently strong resistance of the surrounding psychological field of belief and world outlook. The composer had been working on the opera for about 9 months, which is associatively comparable to the bearing and birth of his "spiritual child". The spiritual meaning of the genre canvas of Aria is liturgical which is the canon of repentance. Syncretism of symbols manifested in systems of semantic and genre assimilation is represented by rhetorical signs and baroque genres. The ostinato spiritual and psychological Credo of the personality of Joan of Arc is explained - 1) in her legendary 19-year-old life, a young peasant girl who could not read and write possessed the greatest gift of purity of thoughts and an unshakable faith in the Spiritual World, which governs the earth; 2) she had intuitive-hearted Mercy to her persecutors, enemies, executioners; 3) she subtly felt the highest signs and symbols that were inaccessible and incomprehensible to her surroundings and contemporaries; 4) Joan at her own and sole discretion considered the form, colors and meanings of her symbols – a white embroidered banner, a coat of arms with holy symbols and a sword that she used only to defend and repel the blows. We should pay attention to the fact that both the composer and the heroine of the the "font" of the spirit materializes. Hence, perhaps, the source of the inner potential of spirituality for the related and beloved female images in his works, embodied by the composer one after another – Tatiana and Joan, – being so distant historically and socially from one another are both so close to the great spiritual potential and victorious level of morality, invigorated by the naturalness of the free space of nature, the inner beauty and sincere kindness, concealing the heroic courage of female charm behind the delicate refinement, able to illuminate many generations of people with the centuries-old example to follow. The 18-year-old Joan at the moment of exhibiting the image in the first act of the opera is shown in the vital fullness of a thinking person, who can follow her Divine Principle. The dramaturgic line of Joan is a mono opera of Spirit in the whole opera. In the context of the analysis of the melody, there attracts attention the symbol of harmony of the "lyrics of light" with the intonations of the achieved through much suffering world of the loving heart – the rhetorical formula of the Baroque era - the figures of "pathopoija:" the excitement of passions " parrhesa "," relatio non harmonia ". In the melody of Aria, there is a tension that arises under another symbol, but does not go into it, but psychologically preserves the previous harmony through inclination to the main tonic. This symbol in music of different styles and creative interpretation in the article is defined as "trial under the sign" - powerful in its might, which originates from the environment of reflective knowledge of the Spirit. In the Aria melody, the symbol tirata is not associated, as is customary, with a "shot" or "lightning," but is a symbol of a sparkling spiritual instrument – a sword. Such is embodied in a rather rare image of St. Nicholas the Miracle-Worker, for example, on the icon in the Church of the Holy Trinity in the monastery of St. Iona in Kiev. Saint Nicholas is depicted with a mighty sword, passionately raised vertically upward in the name of protecting holy justice. The sword is also associated with the power of the spiritual thought-arrow, reflected in the symbols of the graphic hooked notation of Kievan Rus.

Religious Newspapers and Presidential Politics, 1840–1848

Although rampant newspaper partisanship characterized the antebellum era, the number of dedicated religious newspapers steadily increased between 1830 and 1850. Meanwhile, a dramatic interweaving of religious and political principles occurred in the Whig Party, which took cues from evangelical reform movements and promoted candidates as spiritual and religious symbols. This article explores the extent to which religious newspapers exhibited political partisanship during the national elections of the 1840s—bookended by the only two presidential elections that Whigs won—with the goal of enhancing understanding of the antebellum religious press. Despite religious editors' universal claims of neutrality and disdain for politics, when examined closely, some religious newspapers displayed the political bias that was characteristic of the era's secular press. Preference toward Whigs in religious newspapers extends ethnocultural voting theory that ties Christian laymen's political behavior to religious views, suggesting a disparity between clergymen who edited newspapers and those who did not.

Enslaved African conjure and ritual deposits on the Hume Plantation, South Carolina

Twenty-one ritual deposits have been found in and around cabin sites along the slave street on the former Hume Plantation on Cat Island, South Carolina. Earliest deposits date back to the eighteenth century; however, evidence suggests ritual activity, known as conjure practices or hoodoo, continued after the Civil War among the emancipated Africans who chose to stay. The aim of this article is to present an alternative viewpoint that not all interpretations of enslaved African ritual activity or repurposed artifacts must be viewed through the lens of “resistance” but can be an expression of African agency to define new and multivariant spiritualties in light of changing identities, historical contexts, and value systems. These adaptations incorporated notions of social class and hierarchy as well as expanded spiritual symbolism from exposure to and interaction with Europeans and Native Americans. The result was a formation of religious syncretism.

A főnix újjászületése Petrarca Daloskönyvében

In the history of civilization and ancient literature, from Hesiod, Herodotus, Pliny, Tacito, Ovid to early Christian authors the symbolism of the bird periodically reborn from its ashes continued to survive in the sheets of encyclopedias and bestiaries. The image of the phoenix was transmitted by medieval troubadour poetry in form of rhetorical figures. Francesco Petrarca was not only the renewer of European poetry: he opened a completely singular way even in the interpretation of the unica avis. After having briefly outlined the poetic and spiritual symbolism of the phoenix, the paper focuses on a new poetic role of the bird present in six poems of Canzoniere, accentuating its reflective and pondered contiguousness.

Mining and mapping halal food consumers: A geo-located Twitter opinion polarity analysis

ABSTRACTSimilar to other religious behaviors, food consumption represents a hard-to-fake symbol of spirituality. The halal food market has recently witnessed a significant growth, especially in Asia-Pacific, Europe, and South America. Although social media has become a valuable source for studying the dynamics of consumer opinion, no previous studies have attempted to investigate sentiments toward halal food expressed on social media. This study fills this gap through the analysis of a random sample of 100,000 tweets dealing with halal food. To conduct the analysis, an expert-predefined lexicon of seed adjectives was used. Descriptive analysis detected a generally positive sentiment toward halal food, whereas geo-located Twitter maps showed that “religious diaspora” extensively uses digital posts to communicate about halal food. By analyzing halal food opinions expressed on social media, this research adds breadth and depth to the debate over such an underrepresented area.

A New Model of Angkor Wat: Simulated Reconstruction as a Methodology for Analysis and Public Engagement

ABSTRACTSince its construction in the twelfth century, Angkor Wat has endured as a pre-eminent regional, spiritual, and artistic symbol of mainland Southeast Asia. The temple has been a perennial focus of art-historical research, with scholars typically considering it as an architectural and artistic archetype and as a manifestation of a belief system. The disciplines of art history and digital visualisation, when previously brought together in relation to the temple, have presented the temple as an isolated artefact. Such static interpretations deserve to be discarded, as augmented digital visualisations that are now available offer scholars the opportunity to situate the temple within its historical landscape with goal seeking animated inhabitants (termed ‘agents’), displays of religious practice, ephemeral architecture, and vegetation. Drawing upon recent archaeological findings, a team of researchers from Monash University has created a dynamic simulation of twelfth-century Angkor Wat where plural reconstructions can be explored jointly by digital practitioners and Southeast Asia specialists. In contrast to broad archaeological studies that plot change over decades or centuries, this simulation re-creates just 24 hours; a day in the life of medieval Angkor Wat.

Capelli e identità. L'evoluzione delle pettinature tra i membri della diaspora africana

This paper explores the cultural (and psychological) attitudes toward black people’s hair and hairstyles and their significance in the formation of race relations. Starting from analysing the social, political and religious meanings associated to hair in pre-colonial Africa, the text individuates the Atlantic Trade as the event at the origin of a revolution in black aesthetics. In fact, before the massive influence of European standards, determinant in changing African men and women’s approach to beauty and appearance, hairstyles in Sub-Saharan Africa used to represent a person’s marital status, the hierarchical position in a community, the devotion to a particular cult. The Slavery Era, depriving individuals of their cultures’ peculiar elements, caused the loss of many hair’s social and spiritual symbols, although inaugurating new approaches and symbolisms in hairstyles and black beauty culture. From mere imitation of masters’ haircut and wigs, to afros, dreadlocks and cornrows, African-American and African-Caribbean communities’ hairstyles reflect political choices, social condition and self-perception in accordance to the historical period. Observing the evolution of hairstyles through the decades, the essay covers a temporal journey until the current times, finding in hair an instrument to understand the impact of Western paradigms on black identity.

China’s Experience of Protecting the Great Wall: The Giant Linear Cultural Heritage

The Great Wall of China is a cultural and spiritual symbol of the Chinese nation, and occupies an irreplaceable position in the hearts and minds of the people. It is an integrated system composed of a series of walls, beacons, watch towers, forts and castles and so on. The ancient Chinese incorporated rivers and precipitous mountains and cliffs into the design of the Great Wall as natural barriers. In 2005, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of P.R. China launched a 10-year national Great Wall research and protection plan, called the ‘Great Wall Protection Project (2005–2014)’. The work has included comprehensive field survey, protection legislation, documentation, management responsibilities, educational outreach, implementing special laws and a series of protection projects of sections of the Wall.

Isidorean Wolf Lore and the felafæcne deor of Maxims I.C: Some Rhetorical and Legal Contexts for Recognising Another Old English wulf in Sheep’s Clothing

ABSTRACTThe tripartite Exeter Maxims, or Maxims I, is an Old English verse catalogue of proverbs and gnomic utterances that is often assumed to be a Germanic repository of pre-conversion lore. Departing from this critical assumption, this essay identifies book twelve of Isidore’s Etymologiae as the probable source for an evocative passage featuring predatory wolves who threaten travellers in Maxims I.C, lines 7–14. This Isidorean analogue introduces several new rhetorical contexts for interpreting this proverb poem as a sophisticated cultural synthesis of vernacular traditions and imported Latin learning. Comparing the wolf of Maxims I.C with lupine imagery in the writings of ecclesiastics like Wulfstan, Æthelwold and Ælfric—and with several early English wolf proverbs—emphasises the spiritual symbolism and didactic value of wolves in the poem and Anglo-Saxon culture more generally. It also connects the diction of Maxims I.C with the legal vocabulary of the “Durham Proverbs” and Old English law codes meant to adjudicate secular feuds and the cultural practice of church sanctuary. Thus, this intertextual source study sheds light on the intellectual preoccupations and compositional context of the Maxims-poet and some of the rhetorical resources available to the poetic community he composed for.