All Things Divine

The touching of foreheads is an ancient greeting that honors the heart and soul of another human being. Amongst the Mori, it is nose to nose, forehead to foreh...eadcalled hongi. The Hawaiians call it honi, and it is practiced amongst the Tibetans, and the desert Bedouins in Southern Jordan. The Inuit and parts of Scandinavia also do it. For some, this is how we bless the Beloved Feminine Devine. Third eye to third eyesharing sacred breath. This is very honoring as this represents the exchange of ha--the breath of life, and mana--spiritual power between two people. See more

Have a happy Friday the 13th. It's Friday the 13th, a day that people either embrace or fear. A day that doesn't usually come around too often. More than 60 mil...lion people worldwide claim to be affected by a fear of Friday 13th. Some of them won’t go to work, drive cars or get out of bed on this day. Many hospitals have no room 13, while airports don't have a Gate 13 and a lot of hotels don't have a floor 13. The official word for the fear of Friday 13th is paraskevidekatriaphobia. The belief that Friday 13th is bad luck may have sprang from Norse legend when on Friday, 12 Gods were joined by a 13th God, Loki who was a cruel one, he brought upon humans great misfortune. Loki crashed a party at Valhalla disguised as an old hag and took advantage of the Norse virtue of hospitality and to never turn away a needy guest. The Gods allowed him in and fed him thinking he was a nomad soul passing through. Valhalla was the banquet hall of the Gods. The Gods where enjoying a great feast were Balder, who was Odin's son was letting people throw spears at him to show his strength and courage. There were 12 guests present at the hall they were the greatest of the Norse Gods, until Loki arrived. Loki the trickster Norse God was the 13th guest, the affair turned grim when Balder the beloved son of Odin, the God of light, joy, and reconciliation was killed when Loki tricked Balder's sightless brother Hod into throwing a spear of mistletoe at him. Mistletoe was the only on earth that could kill Balder. By doing this Loki brought about the promise of Ragnarök which in Norse mythology will be doomsday, when Odin will get revenge on Loki. There will be a great battle between the Gods, this will bring about the end of the world ushering in a new dawn where Balder will be resurrected and rule in place of Odin. On Friday 13th in the year 1307 thousands of soldier monks of the powerful Knights Templar were massacred by French king Louis IV it is said that blood ran through the streets like a river. Many people believe this is where our fear of the date springs from. The Pope of the church in Rome in Conjunction with the King of France, carried out a secret death warrant Against "the Knights Templar". The Templar's were terminated as heretics, never again to hold the power that they had held for so long. The Grand Master Jacques DeMolay was arrested and before he was killed, he was tortured and crucified, this was carried out on Friday 13th and there were 13 High Templar's which ruled the Knights Templar. In Spanish-speaking countries, Tuesdays dated the 13th not Fridays are considered unlucky. In Italian culture, Friday the 17th is considered unlucky. The number 13 appears many times on the U.S. $1 bill there are 13 stars, 13 stripes, 13 steps, 13 arrows and even has an olive branch with 13 leaves on it. Also there were 13 colonies in British North America. There are 13 stars and stripes on the original American flag. From a religious standpoint, Muslims tout Friday as the day Allah created Adam, legend has it that Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, the apple on a Friday and later died on a Friday and Christians consider Friday as the day on which Christ was crucified by the Romans. Also the number 13 in the Christian faith is the number of guests at the Last Supper with the 13th guest at the table being the traitor Judas. When Christians combine this day and number the combination can only hold special significance. In Judaism The Bar Mitzva is held at age 13 on a Friday the Jewish Sabbath day. The Bible also lists 13 attributes of God. There are also 13 Witches to a Coven. Which is true for many traditional Covens.

Hi, I'm a tipple, NOT a mosquito. You kill me without me being a danger to anyone, actually I'm a help. I don't suck blood, but I feed on the nectar of flowers ...helping to pollinate them. Now that you know me please don't kill me, if I mistakenly enter your house, walk me out, don't be like everyone who destroys what they can't understand. See more

You have already encountered them when lifting a brick or a damp object, you may even have felt disgust, and even wondered what nature was wanting in creating t...hem. Well, omniscids are a suborder of terrestrial isopod crustaceans, whose function in evolution is to eliminate heavy metals such as mercury, cadmium and lead, which are extremely harmful to humans, contributing to the cleaning of soil and groundwater. (Don't kill them, don't crush them, pass this along.) Bancada Ecossistema Adaptado : By Nando Goulart

Knocking on wood actually comes from the belief that every tree is inhabited by a spirit known as Hamadryad or Dryad. The action of knocking was practiced by an...cient priests to immediately summon this spirit to aid the Priest or Priestess in order to ward off evil or fulfill a wish. So the next time you knock on wood, remember that you are actually summoning the Spirits of the Tree. See more

The origin of the term "Tree hugger" The first tree huggers were 294 men and 69 women belonging to the Bishnois branch of Hinduism, who, in 1730, died while try...ing to protect the trees in their village from being turned into the raw material for building a palace. They literally clung to the trees, while being slaughtered by the foresters. But their action led to a royal decree prohibiting the cutting of trees in any Bishnoi village. And now those villages are virtual wooded oases amidst an otherwise desert landscape. Not only that, the Bishnois inspired the Chipko movement (chipko means to cling in Hindi) that started in the 1970s, when a group of peasant women in the Himalayan hills of northern India threw their arms around trees designated to be cut down. Within a few years, this tactic, also known as tree satyagraha, had spread across India, ultimately forcing reforms in forestry and a moratorium on tree felling in Himalayan regions. Source: goo.gl/HTyZEj Photo: The village women of the Chipko movement in the early 70's in the Garhwal Hills of India, protecting the trees from being cut down.

How To Make Honey-Citrus Syrups For Coughs, Cold & Sore Throat These easy-to-make, no-cook, naturally flavored honey citrus syrups are a fantastic home remedy f...or sore throats and coughs. They taste great and can be taken with hot water or tea. Recipe http://www.theyummylife.com/Honey_Citrus_Syrups

Winter solstice...

I’ve always loved this painting .. the story that inspired it is profound and certainly relatable to this very day According to a 19th century legend, the Tr...uth and the Lie meet one day. The Lie says to the Truth: "It's a marvellous day today"! The Truth looks up to the skies and sighs, for the day was really beautiful. They spend a lot of time together, ultimately arriving beside a well. The Lie tells the Truth: "The water is very nice, let's take a bath together!" The Truth, once again suspicious, tests the water and discovers that it indeed is very nice. They undress and start bathing. Suddenly, the Lie comes out of the water, puts on the clothes of the Truth and runs away. The furious Truth comes out of the well and runs everywhere to find the Lie and to get her clothes back. The World, seeing the Truth naked, turns its gaze away, with contempt and rage. The poor Truth returns to the well and disappears forever, hiding therein, its shame. Since then, the Lie travels around the world, dressed as the Truth, satisfying the needs of society, because, the World, in any case, harbours no wish at all to meet the naked Truth. The world famous painting, The Truth Coming Out of the Well, by Jean-Léon Gérôme, 1896.