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Topic Review
History of Purgatory
The idea of purgatory has roots that date back into antiquity. A sort of proto-purgatory called the "celestial Hades" appears in the writings of Plato and Heraclides Ponticus and in many other pagan writers. This concept is distinguished from the Hades of the underworld described in the works of Homer and Hesiod. In contrast, the celestial Hades was understood as an intermediary place where souls spent an undetermined time after death before either moving on to a higher level of existence or being reincarnated back on earth. Its exact location varied from author to author. Heraclides of Pontus thought it was in the Milky Way; the Academicians, the Stoics, Cicero, Virgil, Plutarch, the Hermetical writings situated it between the Moon and the Earth or around the Moon; while Numenius and the Latin Neoplatonists thought it was located between the sphere of the fixed stars and the Earth. Perhaps under the influence of Hellenistic thought, we find another intermediate state entering Jewish religious thought in the last centuries B.C.E. In Maccabees we find the practice of prayer for the dead with a view to their after life purification a practice accepted by some Christians. The same practice appears in other traditions, such as the medieval Chinese Buddhist practice of making offerings on behalf of the dead, who are said to suffer numerous trials. Among other reasons, Catholic belief in purgatory is based on the practice of prayer for the dead. Descriptions and doctrine regarding purgatory developed over the centuries. Those who believe in purgatory interpret extra-biblical passages such as 2 Maccabees 12:41-46 (not accepted as Scripture by Protestants but recognized by Orthodox and Catholics), and biblical passages such as 2 Timothy 1:18, Matthew 12:32, Luke 16:19-16:26, Luke 23:43, 1 Corinthians 3:11-3:15 and Hebrews 12:29 as support for prayer for the dead, an active interim state for the dead prior to the resurrection, and purifying flames after death. The first Christians looked forward to the imminent return of Christ and did not develop detailed beliefs about the interim state. Gradually, Christians, especially in the West, took an interest in circumstances of the interim state between one's death and the future resurrection. Christians both East and West prayed for the dead in this interim state, although theologians in the East refrained from defining it. Augustine of Hippo distinguished between the purifying fire that saves and eternal consuming fire for the unrepentant. Gregory the Great established a connection between earthly penance and purification after death. All Soul's Day, established in the 10th century, turned popular attention to the condition of departed souls. The idea of Purgatory as a physical place (like heaven and hell) was "born" in the late 11th century. Medieval theologians concluded that the purgatorial punishments consisted of material fire. The Western formulation of purgatory proved to be a sticking point in the Great Schism between East and West. The Catholic Church believes that the living can help those whose purification from their sins is not yet completed not only by praying for them but also by gaining indulgences for them as an act of intercession. The later Middle Ages saw the growth of considerable abuses, such as the unrestricted sale of indulgences by professional "pardoners" sent to collect contributions to projects such as the rebuilding of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. These abuses were one of the factors that led to the Protestant Reformation. Most Protestants rejected the idea of purgatory, as never clearly mentioned in Luther's canon of the Bible, which excludes the Deuterocanonical books. Modern Catholic theologians have softened the punitive aspects of purgatory and stress instead the willingness of the dead to undergo purification as preparation for the happiness of heaven The English Anglican scholar John Henry Newman argued, in a book that he wrote before becoming Catholic, that the essence of the doctrine on purgatory is locatable in ancient tradition, and that the core consistency of such beliefs are evidence that Christianity was "originally given to us from heaven".
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  • 14 Nov 2022
Topic Review
History of Taoism
The history of Taoism stretches throughout Chinese history. Originating in prehistoric China, it has exerted a powerful influence over Chinese culture throughout the ages. Taoism evolved in response to changing times, with its doctrine and associated practices being revised and refined. The acceptance of Taoism by the ruling class has waxed and waned, alternately enjoying periods of favor and rejection. Most recently, Taoism has emerged from a period of suppression and is undergoing a revival in China. Laozi is traditionally regarded as the founder of Taoist religion and is closely associated in this context with "original", or "primordial", Taoism. Whether he actually existed is disputed, however, the work attributed to him - the Daodejing - is dated to the 4th or 3rd century BC. However, Taoism clearly predates Laozi (Lao Tzu) as he refers to "The Tao masters of antiquity" in Chapter 15 of the Daodejing (Tao Te Ching). Moreover, the Yellow Emperor, Huangdi (2697–2597 BCE) Is often associated with origin of the Tao. Sinologist Isabelle Robinet identifies four components in the emergence of Taoism: Some elements of Taoism may be traced to prehistoric folk religions in China that later coalesced into a Taoist tradition. In particular, many Taoist practices drew from the Warring-States-era phenomena of the Wu (shaman) (connected to the "shamanism" of Southern China) and the Fangshi (which probably derived from the "archivist-soothsayers of antiquity, one of whom supposedly was Laozi himself"), even though later Taoists insisted that this was not the case. Both terms were used to designate individuals dedicated to "... magic, medicine, divination,... methods of longevity and to ecstatic wanderings" as well as exorcism; in the case of the wu, "shamans" or "sorcerers" is often used as a translation. The fangshi were philosophically close to the School of Yin-Yang, and relied much on astrological and calendrical speculations in their divinatory activities.
  • 5.6K
  • 08 Nov 2022
Topic Review
History of X-ray Research in Colonial India
This is the stroy of the beginning of X-ray research in colonial India and its progress to understand the India's respectable position globally in X-ray researh in modern times.The history of X-ray research in colonial India started with the procurement of X-ray tube by Dr. Mahendralal Sircar within six months of the discovery of X-rays at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS). The first application of X-rays for clinical purposes was done, in private capacity, independently by Dr. Sircar and Sir J.C. Bose. After his return from England in 1921, C.V. Raman initiated serious X-ray scattering studies in the structure of matter at the IACS which proliferated to all parts of India and laid the foundation stone of modern X-ray research in India.
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  • 29 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Hobbes's Moral and Political Philosophy
Thomas Hobbes’s moral and political philosophy is constructed around the basic premise of social and political order, explaining how humans should live in peace under a sovereign power so as to avoid conflict within the ‘state of nature’. Hobbes’s moral philosophy and political philosophy are significantly intertwined; his moral thought is based around ideas of human nature, which determine the interactions that make up his political philosophy.  Hobbes’s moral philosophy therefore provides justification for, and informs, the theories of sovereignty and the state of nature that underpin his political philosophy. In utilising methods of deductive reasoning and motion science, Hobbes examines human emotion, reason and knowledge to construct his ideas of human nature (moral philosophy). This methodology critically influences his politics, determining the interactions of conflict (in the state of nature) which necessitate the creation of a politically authoritative State to ensure the maintenance of peace and cooperation. This method is used and developed in works such as The Elements of Law (1640), De Cive (1642), Leviathan (1651) and Behemoth (1681).
  • 1.3K
  • 30 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Holography and Its Potential
In Camera Lucida, Roland Barthes discusses the capacity of the photographic image to represent “flat death.” Documentation of an event, happening, or time is traditionally reliant on the photographic to determine its ephemeral existence and to secure its legacy within history. The event is date and time stamped by the photographic document, which stands as proof of its taking place. However, this type of document is often unsuitable to capture the real essence and experience of the artwork in situ. The depth and varied nuances of the event go largely unrepresented in this type of record. The two-dimensional photographic document resigns the embodied and three-dimensional experience to a flat death. The hologram, with its spatial and three-dimensional realization of an image, offers a potential solution to this problem. In providing a view of the dexterity and depth of an inert object or human body, it creates a more comprehensive photographic document as an act of legacy. Although this cannot fully account or attest to the experience (as that can only occur through active and present observation), the three-dimensional representation within the hologram allows for greater understanding of ‘being there’ at the time of its happening. The hologram therefore can be suggested to be a more suitable means of documentation for the active and first-hand art experience. However, there are issues concerning how this type of photographic document functions within an art context. Appropriateness and suitability is as open for debate with the hologram as with its two-dimensional counterpart, concerning how it successfully operates as a document. Attitudes to methods necessary for artistic production and holography’s place within the art process can be responsible for this problem. The seductive qualities of holography may be attributable to any failure that ensues, but if used precisely the process can be effective to create a document within an art context. The failures and successes of the hologram to be reliable as a document of experience are discussed in this article, together with a suggestion of how it might undergo a transformation and reactivation. When situated as an integral component within a new artwork the hologram exists both as a document of the past and an experience in the present, and the article will offer an example of how this can occur.
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  • 03 Feb 2021
Topic Review
Holy Confucian Church
The Holy Confucian Church or Holy Church of Confucius (孔圣会 Kǒngshènghuì) or Holy Confucian Church of China (中华孔圣会 Zhōnghuá Kǒngshènghuì) is a body formed of many local Confucian churches or halls (孔圣堂 Kǒngshèngtáng) in China . The grassroots movement was initiated by Zhou Beichen, a disciple of the Confucian philosopher Jiang Qing, who founded the first holy church in Shenzhen in 2009. The aim of the movement was to develop a network of local Confucian churches throughout the country, eventually unifying into a national body and becoming the state religion of China. The Holy Confucian Church has received support from the Confucian Academy of Hong Kong, although it has developed independently from the latter. In 2010 the first holy church in Shenzhen was officially registered as a non-governmental non-profit (fēi qǐyè 非企业) organisation of public interest (gōngyì 公益) affiliated with the Federation of Confucian Culture of Qufu City. The Holy Church maintains close relations with local government officials and high-ranking dignitaries of the State Administration for Religious Affairs attend its ceremonies. The national and international body, the Holy Confucian Church of China, was finally established in late 2015.
  • 1.4K
  • 20 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Hong Meng
Hong Meng, Hung Meng, or Hung Mung (simplified Chinese: 鸿蒙; traditional Chinese: 鴻蒙; pinyin: Hóngméng; Wade–Giles: Hung-meng), literally the Vast Mist, is a character in the Daoist text Zhuangzi and a metaphor for the "primordial world, primeval chaos" in Chinese creation myths. Like many Zhuangist names, Hong Meng is a word play, translated as "Mists-of-Chaos", "Vast Obscurity", "Big Concealment", "Vital Principle", "Natural Energy" and "Big Goose Dummy".
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  • 09 Nov 2022
Biography
Horace Romano Harré
Horace Romano Harré (/ˈhæreɪ/;[1] 18 December 1927 – 17 October 2019),[2][3] known widely as Rom Harré, was a New Zealand-British philosopher and psychologist. Harré was born in Apiti, in northern Manawatu, near Palmerston North, New Zealand,[4] but held British citizenship.[5] He studied chemical engineering and later graduated with a BSc in mathematics (1948) and a Master's in Philo
  • 537
  • 30 Nov 2022
Topic Review
House of Bonaparte
The House of Bonaparte (originally Buonaparte) was an imperial and royal European dynasty founded in 1804 by Italian noble Carlo Buonaparte and his son Napoleon I, a French military leader of Italian heritage who had risen to notability out of the French Revolution and who in 1804 transformed the First French Republic into the First French Empire, five years after his coup d'état of November 1799. Napoleon turned the Grande Armée against every major European power and dominated continental Europe through a series of military victories during the Napoleonic Wars. He installed members of his family on the thrones of client states, extending the power of the dynasty. The House of Bonaparte formed the Imperial House of France during the French Empire, together with some non-Bonaparte family members. In addition to holding the title of Emperor of the French, the Bonaparte dynasty held various other titles and territories during the Napoleonic Wars, including their ancestral Kingdom of Italy, the Kingdom of Spain, the Kingdom of Westphalia, the Kingdom of Holland, and the Kingdom of Naples. The dynasty held power for around a decade until the Napoleonic Wars began to take their toll. Making very powerful enemies, such as Austria, Britain, Russia, and Prussia, as well as royalist (particularly Bourbon) restorational movements in France, Spain, the Two Sicilies, and Sardinia, the dynasty eventually collapsed due to the final defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo and the restoration of former dynasties by the Congress of Vienna. During the reign of Napoleon I, the Imperial Family consisted of the Emperor's immediate relations – his wife, son, siblings, and some other close relatives, namely Joachim Murat, Joseph Fesch, and Eugène de Beauharnais. Between 1852 and 1870, there was a Second French Empire, when a member of the Bonaparte dynasty again ruled France: Napoleon III, the youngest son of Louis Bonaparte. However, during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871, the dynasty was again ousted from the Imperial Throne. Since that time, there has been a series of pretenders. Supporters of the Bonaparte family's claim to the throne of France are known as Bonapartists. Current head Jean-Christophe, Prince Napoléon, has a Bourbon mother.
  • 1.9K
  • 11 Nov 2022
Topic Review
House of La Fayette
The House of La Fayette was a French family of Nobles of the Sword, from the province of Auvergne, established during the Middle-Age by the lords of the fief of La Fayette held by the senior branch of the Motier family.
  • 1.1K
  • 14 Nov 2022
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