by atmara | Aug 21, 2014 | Creativity, Inspiration, TED Talks, Video
According to ted.com: “Ink that conducts electricity; a window that turns from clear to opaque at the flip of a switch; a jelly that makes music. All this stuff exists, and Catarina Mota says: It’s time to play with it. Mota leads us on a tour of surprising and cool new materials, and suggests that the way we’ll figure out what they’re good for is to experiment, tinker and have fun.”
“A maker of things and open-source advocate, Catarina Mota is co-founder of openMaterials.org, a collaborative project dedicated to do-it-yourself experimentation with smart materials. This is a new class of materials that change in response to stimuli: conductive ink, shape-memory plastics, etc. Her goal is to encourage the making of things; to that end, she teaches hands-on workshops on high-tech materials and simple circuitry for both young people and adults–with a side benefit of encouraging interest in science, technology and knowledge-sharing.”
Intriguing! Enjoy.
For those of you not familiar with TED Talks here is a brief summery from www.ted.com: “TED is a small nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences — the TED Conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Oxford UK each summer — TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Project and Open TV Project, the inspiring TED Fellows and TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize”
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I look forward to your thoughts and comments!
by atmara | Aug 18, 2014 | Art, Mandala Monday, Mandalas, Sacred Geometry
Interior of the rose at Strasbourg Cathedral.
Image from Wikimedia Commons
For the past several centuries in Europe, most of the great cathedrals have at least one stained glass rose window that is place in a primary architectural location on the building. Though people admire the great expanse of these incredible stained glass windows (some are up to 45 feet diameter, or 8 stories tall), plus the beautiful colors of the glass, few are aware of the deeper significance of why rose windows were put there in the first place.
The builders of the cathedrals were the master Masons who at the time still had the esoteric knowledge of sacred geometry, and how to use its effects to elevate the spiritual nature of man. Unfortunately, most people today, and even back then, believed the cathedrals were built for the purpose of religious ceremony and ritual, but this only true on a basic understanding. As always throughout history, the master initiates of spirituality would pass on their teachings and knowledge in a way that the common folk could learn of by experience, rather than intellect. In other words, the cathedrals surrounded the people with a precise geometric structure that had subtle effects on their spiritual nature, and thus slowly helping them to awaken to their true understanding of themselves as conscious spiritual beings.
For example, the entire building was made of some type of natural stone, like granite, marble, or sandstone, which the Masons knew had the ability to carry the etheric energy of the earth, the same as the great pyramids in Egypt. They also understood that shape and form also affected this energy, thus the cathedral, like the pyramid, was constructed entirely by the use of sacred geometry, which means each part of the building was mathematically based on one master geometrical relationship. There were no such things as haphazard sizes. Every stone and every shape was based on this geometric master formula. This caused the etheric energy within the cathedral, specially underneath the central dome, to elevate anyone within its field. This knowledge is forgotten today.
The rose window, usually placed in an elevated position, actually represents in physical matter, what happens when the “third eye” (in the center of the forehead according to yogi meditation masters) opens up in a state of deep meditation, this eye becomes a doorway to the higher realms of spiritual dimensions. So in the cathedral, the stained glass rose window is actually a meditation mandala that can be used by anyone sitting in the space to focus on, and help them to open their own spiritual window of consciousness.
Though only a few aspects of the cathedrals were touched upon in this article, you can understand that the original shape and design of these buildings were for most people, the religious practices of various beliefs, but in reality, on the inner realm, were designed for the spiritual elevation of consciousness. And of course, they still have the exact same effects today, since in the world of sacred geometry, these principles of construction are eternal.
You can visit and learn how to have your own stained glass rose window for both simple beauty and artwork added to your space, and also for your personal meditation mandala that you can use anytime. Visit http://www.rosewindowcompany.com
Andrew Shimanoff has studied sacred geometry and used it in his custom woodworking business for the past 20 years. His company specializes in making stained glass rose window frames for hobbyists, artesans, churches, and buildings. Visit at http://www.rosewindowcompany.com
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I look forward to your thoughts and comments!
by atmara | Aug 14, 2014 | Creativity, Inspiration, TED Talks
According to ted.com: “Gever Tulley uses engaging photos and footage to demonstrate the valuable lessons kids learn at his Tinkering School. When given tools, materials and guidance, these young imaginations run wild and creative problem-solving takes over to build unique boats, bridges and even a roller coaster!”
“A software engineer, Gever Tulley is the co-founder of the Tinkering School, a weeklong camp where lucky kids get to play with their very own power tools. He’s interested in helping kids learn how to build, solve problems, use new materials and hack old ones for new purposes. He’s also a certified paragliding instructor.”
Enjoy!
For those of you not familiar with TED Talks here is a brief summery from www.ted.com:
“TED is a small nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences — the TED Conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Oxford UK each summer — TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Project and Open TV Project, the inspiring TED Fellows and TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize”
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I look forward to your thoughts and comments!