Thursday, March 31, 2016

Coloring Book Controversy

Everywhere I go lately I see these adult coloring books. They have intricate and detailed images to be colored. It is known that coloring is a good way to relax and it seems that lots of people are enjoying this simple way to unwind. I have been drawn to the ones that have flowers or animals and not so much to the sacred geometry ones for some reason. I have yet to buy a book but have participated in coloring with friends and family. I even have an app on my phone for the mandala images. 

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I saw a video recently and I do not remember who or I would give him credit, that was talking about what you are giving your energy to and why these coloring books were being pushed so hard. At first I only saw these at art stores or book stores and now you can get them in line at the grocery store or Dollar General. It has really become a fad. I did a quick google search and here is what I found.

mandala (Sanskrit: मण्डल, lit, circle) is a spiritual and ritual symbol in Indian religions, representing the universe. In common use, "mandala" has become a generic term for any diagram, chart or geometric pattern that represents the cosmos metaphysically or symbolically; a microcosm of the universe.

In various spiritual traditions, mandalas may be employed for focusing attention of practitioners and adepts, as a spiritual guidance tool, for establishing a sacred space, and as an aid to meditation and trance induction. 

yantra is a two- or three-dimensional geometric composition used in sadhanas, puja or meditative rituals. It is considered to represent the abode of the deity. Each yantra is unique and calls the deity into the presence of the practitioner through the elaborate symbolic geometric designs. According to one scholar, "Yantras function as revelatory symbols of cosmic truths and as instructional charts of the spiritual aspect of human experience"[5] (In Hindu)

So if I am reading this correctly, each symbol has a deity connected to it that your attention is being directed towards. 

USES OF MANDALAS

In the many traditions where mandalas are used, there are different rites where the practitioner, at least metaphorically, establishes a dialogue with the symbol or deity at the core of the mandala by moving progressively from the outside towards the center. Once within the center, the practitioner connects with the central symbol or deity and he or she is able to perceive all manifestations as part of a single underlying whole and gets closer to the goal of enlightenment or perfect understanding.
The Vajrayana Buddhist school (Tantric Buddhism), has a very complex set of rituals. In order to help the disciples to gain enlightenment, they use a wide range of physical disciplines and tools including mandalas. This school believes that achieving enlightenment by traditional methods requires a very long time, even many lifetimes, while the methods used in Vajrayana can deliver the same result in just a single lifetime.

It seems that every culture has some form of Mandalas they use to connect to some spiritual source. As with most things some are probably good and some are probably bad. I wonder if these coloring books need a disclaimer to warn people that they might be connecting to a spirit. 





Sunday, March 20, 2016

Space Fence and Flat Earth

The AN/FPS-133 Air Force Space Surveillance System, colloquially known as the Space Fence, was a U.S. government multistatic radar system built to detect orbital objects passing over America. It is a component of the US space surveillance network, and according to the US Navy was able to detect basketball sized (29.5 inches (75 cm)) objects at heights up to 30,000 km (15,000 nautical miles.)[1]
The system ceased operation in September 2013. Plans for a new space fence are underway with sites at the Kwajalein Atoll in theMarshall Islands, along with an option for another radar site in Western Australia.[2]
The operation's headquarters were at Dahlgren, Virginia, and radar stations were spread out across the continental United States at roughly the level of the 33rd parallel north. Per Wikipedia.

I did not even know about the space fence until I saw a headline about it being closed. It struck me as strange that it was on 33rd parallel. If we live on a globe, would not the equator be a better location or somewhere in the middle?  If you look at the flat earth map, the 33rd parallel is in the middle. Antarctic and Arctic are both at 66 degrees so 33 would be in middle. Also you have Roswell, New Mexico on 33rd parallel as well as supposedly the fallen angels landed on Mt. Hermon which is on 33rd parallel. 

When the system became operational in 1961, the original frequency was 108.50 MHz (just above the FM broadcast band). In 1965 the "Fence" system was modernized with the operating frequency doubled to 216.98 MHz (just above Channel 13 in the VHF TV broadcast band) to obtain higher resolution and to locate smaller objects. This frequency was used until the Fence was decommissioned in 2013. Per wikipedia.  6 x 6 x 6= 216


As of November 2014, the USAF Strategic Command had "announced data-sharing agreements with at least seven countries and 44 companies, but [the details of] those agreements have [not] been made public" and it is unclear how much of the new Space Fence data will be shared.[1]
Countries with space situational awareness data-sharing agreements in place with the USAF include AustraliaJapanItalyCanadaFrance, the Republic of Korea and theUnited Kingdom. It also "has agreements with the European Space Agency and Europe’s Eumetsat weather satellite organization.  The new space fence is at  8°43′N 167°44′E.  
The new space fence seems to be more inline with a globe earth.
Maybe they want to be more aware of what is going on at outer rim? It is fun to speculate.


Tuesday, March 15, 2016

March 16

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Happy Birthday to Me....I figured that it is my blog and I can post something self indulgent like this on my birthday.
I am 48. I do not mind stating my age. I earned that age. Last year was a really tough year and I am hoping that this one is better. Last year was odd. :) O.K. I love lame jokes and I could not let that one pass. 
Some facts about March 16th. It is usually the 75th day of the year but on leap years like this one, it is the 76th day. I share a birthday with Jerry Lewis. Some people celebrate it as John 3:16 day.  3+16+20+16=55 
Happy Birthday to any other Pisces out there.

Monday, March 14, 2016

Happy Pi Day


Pi Day is an annual celebration of the mathematical constant Ï€ (pi). Pi Day is observed on March 14 (3/14 in the month/day date format) since 3, 1, and 4 are the first three significant digits of Ï€.[2][3][4] In 2009, the United States House of Representativessupported the designation of Pi Day.[5]
Pi Approximation Day is observed on July 22 (22/7 in the day/month date format), since the fraction 227 is a commonapproximation of Ï€, which is accurate to two decimal places and dates from Archimedes.[6]


Sunday, March 6, 2016

Obama and SXSW

I just found that President Obama and the First Lady are going to speak at South by South West in Austin. Here is the press release.

SXSW is honored to announce President Barack Obama will appear as part of a Keynote Conversation at SXSW Interactive on Friday, March 11 and First Lady Michelle Obama will be the opening Keynote at SXSW Music on Wednesday, March 16. This marks the first time in the 30-year history of SXSW that a sitting President and the First Lady have participated in the event.

So Obama is speaking on 3/11 . In Austin, you can dial 3-1-1 and get information about Austin.  It could also be 3 11's  to equal 33. That is a favorite of Mason's.  An eleven date being used with a president coming to Texas makes me nervous because of JFK being shot on 11/22. 

If there is a University of Texas football game going on, the city of Austin can be difficult to get around because of gridlock. SXSW is really bad about this and I usually try to stay away from Austin every year because the city is in lock down. I cannot image what it will be like with the President and First Lady there. What a nightmare for the Secrete Service. The motto of Austin is Keep Austin Weird. There is an odd crowd in Austin  on a good day much less with all that is going on with SXSW.  I hope he is able to speak and get out of there safely. 

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