#especially donskoi

[lxvvie]

On today's episode of Simps-R-Us: A Guy and his... pet(s), or You, Your Faves, and your fur/feathered/fin-babies:

Capt. John Price - Standing ten toes down on this: Price would have two small, cute dogs, one named Sir Peabody and the other named Lady Marie. You two spoil them something fierce and they have a pile of little doggy hats that match their beloved papa's... much to his chagrin.

Gaz - Gaz said he'd surprise you and surprise you he did. He came home with a cockatoo. A damn cockatoo. Jokes on him, though, because your bird baby absolutely loves to prank the shit out of Gaz, too, by mimicking your voice when you're away and making him jump. Jokes on both of you now, because Soap has taught him how to curse and that's all he does now, Scottish accent and all. You have a picture saved of the bird (named Buttercup) on top of Gaz's head.

Alex Keller - Has the most gremlin Donskoy (named Brunswick) to ever gremlin, complete with the wide stormy eyes, which is funny because Keller can sometimes make a face that's very much gremlin-esque and the two greatly resemble each other. Can usually be found making biscuits on Alex's head.

Soap - Has a Labrador named Whiskey that he absolutely adores. Whiskey has also put you two in the most adorable of love triangles where you don't know whose affection you're playfully fighting for on any given day. Also has a tendency to take Soap's socks and he has to chase him throughout the house. Well, he and Whiskey are chasing each other throughout the house just about constantly.

Ghost - You guys talked about it but he surprised you one day by bringing home a Belgian Mal puppers who didn't make the unit. His name? Pup. Pup Riley. And Pup Riley is a ball of energy. Bloody hell. He always assumes he's going for a walk whenever you two make ready to leave. He also won't let Simon leave without him and so Simon usually has to create a diversion just to walk out the front door. It's also not uncommon for Pup to jump on his Papa whenever he gets home, too. Oh, did we also talk about the fact that Simon has to fight with Pup for his side of the bed whenever he's home or that Pup wakes him up early in the damn morning to take him out for his first walk of the day?

Roach - Found a stray kitten and brought her home. Her name's Oatmeal. Oatmeal is now the chonkiest, cutest loaf (you send Roach various pictures of her Loafiness). You two also bought her a set of those pet buttons just for shits and giggles and Oatmeal's really caught on to them. She uses "Dad", "Mad", and "Food" a lot even though she stays fed lmao.

Keegan - To everyone's surprise (and his own), has a husky named Balto who ignores the concept of personal space, loves to put his paw right in the middle of Keegan's face, and has pissed on Keegan's boots more than once because Balto felt slighted (you had to go to the groomer's, buddy, you rolled in mud). You and Keegan have also lost count of the number of times you've had to carry Balto into the house because he refuses to come inside, especially when it’s cold.

Alejandro - You two adopted a senior dog named Mojo who is the most peaceful little angel. Can usually be found lying near yours or Alejo's feet as you're working or something of that nature.

Rudy - You two have this huge ass tank full of fish that run the gamut of the rainbow and you remember all their names. The brooding one is named Alejandro and his namesake was not amused lmao.

König - You two have a small but floofy cat. She's black with a grey undercoat that he calls his "little Prinzessin" and she always looks like she's in a constant state of surprise. Whenever she blinks or closes her eyes, she becomes a floofy void. Her Highness prefers to be carried like a baby, thank you very much.

Phillip Graves - You two are the proud parents of a Bulldog named Bubba who thinks he has his humans trained (spoiler alert: he kinda does). Bubba Graves makes your day with the way he silently judges his parents, throws a tantrum when he doesn't get more food or pets, and usually has Philip sigh facetiously and go, "Now, son, why can't you behave for your old man, huh?"

[cryptidclaw]

Have you ever seen the Donskoy breed? I just found out about them. Probably a new favorite hairless cat tbh

I have! I think they are very cool!! I especially like the ones that dont shed all their fur and have silly fluffy tummies hehehe

[stateofsport211]

📸 ATP Challenger Livestream (via website)

The beginning of the second set was a rollercoaster where Marchenko was initially a double break ahead (thanks to his forehand winners as the gate-opener to both breaks, especially in creating the important break points), but the lead was blown out of some erratic service games from the baseline. Donskoy, who almost had the chance to turn it around, still remained passive while Marchenko tried to find a way to stay offensive, where the latter defined his moments toward the end of the match.

In the twelfth game, it took a backhand winner to secure his fourth break point of the game. It was indeed converted out of another error from Donskoy, which allowed Marchenko to serve for the match. Despite the only hiccup, Marchenko managed to serve it out and redirect Donskoy, hence the former secured his quarterfinal appearance in hopes for a deeper run.

[orthodoxydaily]

Saints&Reading: Friday, January 27, 2023

january 27_january 1

Leavetaking of the Theophany (baptism of our Lord)

IN MEMORY of NEW MARTYR BISHOP AMBROSIUS (Gudko), and HIS COMPANIONS SLAIN at RAITHU Monastery near Kazan ( 1918) 

Bishop Ambrose, in the world Basil Gudko, was born on December 28, 1867 in Lyublin province. In 1889 he entered the St. Petersburg Theological Academy, graduating in 1893. In 1891 he was tonsured into the mantia. On May 30, 1893 he was ordained to the priesthood. On October 14, 1893 he was appointed head of the catechetical missionary school in the Altai. In 1897 he became head of the Korean Spiritual Mission, and on December 7 was raised to the rank of archimandrite. On June 30, 1899 he was made inspector of the Moscow Donskoy spiritual school. On July 27, 1901 he was appointed rector of the Volhynia theological seminary. On April 30, 1904 he was consecrated bishop of Kremenets, a vicariate of the Volhynia diocese by Metropolitan Flavian of Kiev, Bishop Anthony (Khrapovitsky) and others. On February 17 (according to other sources, 24 or 27), 1909, he was appointed bishop of Baltsk, a vicariate of the Kamenets-Podolsk diocese. On February 14/27, 1914, he was appointed Bishop of Sarapul, a vicariate of Vyatka diocese, and on October 5, 1916 – Bishop of Sarapul and Elabuga, with special privileges. Vladyka did much to strengthen the faith and love of the believers through his inspiring sermons and services. He also waged a successful campaign against drunkenness, which was a major problem in such centres as Sarapul, Izhevsk and Votkinsk. Abstinence brotherhoods were founded in Sarapul and Elabuga. At the end of 1916 a conflict took place between Bishop Ambrose and two Sarapul liberals, Mikhel and Polyakov, as a result of which Vladyka forbade them to receive Communion. Such a measure was unusual in those times, and Mikhel complained to the Holy Synod. Soon a slanderous campaign was unleashed against Vladyka, who was distinguished for his direct, ardent and fearless character. Delegations of laymen went in defence of Vladyka to St. Petersburg and Bishop Nicander (Fenomenov) of Vyatka. For a while the campaign against Bishop Ambrose quietened down, and the Holy Synod was even thinking of making Sarapul into an independent diocese. However, the February revolution brought to the fore a new procurator, Prince V.N. Lvov, who removed many of the monarchist bishops, including Vladyka Ambrose. And so on March 18/31, 1917 Vladyka was retired, and became the superior of the Sviyazhsk Dormition monastery. Here he found the monastery in a run-down state, with several of the monks living an unworthy life. This was not improved by the interventions of the Sviyazhsk head of police, the atheist Komarov, who took possession of some of the monastery buildings, thereby depriving the pilgrims of a shelter for the night. 19 19 When Vladyka began to introduce discipline into the monastery, some of the brothers rebelled, and one of them, Hierodeacon Theodosius, incited by Komarov, even tried to kill him. The inhabitants of Sviyazhsk and the neighbouring villages were incensed by the incident, and Theodosius was arrested. However, as Vladyka's authority among the Orthodox population increased, so did the attacks of the authorities, who accused him of calling for the return of the Tsar. Vladyka denied this, but in his written defence of October 31, 1917 he said that in view of all the horrors that had been perpetrated in the region by the new authorities, "one could hardly call one who was so daring a criminal, especially if he was dreaming of the autocracy, not in the spirit of Nicholas II, but of Alexander III, when our Rus' was glorious, powerful, peaceful and terrible to all her enemies and evildoers." On January 19, 1918, Hierodeacon Theodosius was released from prison, and the next day he and another troublemaker, Hieromonk Elijah (Borisov) came to the monastery. Under their leadership a part of the monks again began to rebel against the superior, ignoring his instructions and refusing to go to church. Vladyka wanted to remove the troublemakers, but unfortunately he did not get the support he needed from the Spiritual Consistory, and on March 11 (according to another source, 7) he was summoned to appear before the court of the Sviyazhsk revolutionary tribunal on a charge of "counter-revolutionary activity" based on the declarations of the above-mentioned monks. In the course of the trial it turned out that the accused had prayed for soldiers who died “for the tsar” under the old regime, and that on contemporary questions of ecclesiastical life he read only the epistles of Patriarch Tikhon. Priests, townsmen and peasants gave witness on behalf of Vladyka. In spite of the open hostility of the president of the court, an Old Ritualist, on March 15 Vladyka was declared innocent by five votes to two. The next day Vladyka served the Liturgy in his monastery. During a moleben to the Mother of God he prayed on his knees, weeping. Everyone wept... On March 29, the Financial Committee of the Peasants' and Workers' Soviet of the Sviyazhsk uyezd, in its very first order decided to levy a tax of 5000 roubles on all the men's and women's monasteries of the uyezd, and threatened Bishop Ambrose that if he did not carry out the order he would be put on trial and the monastery's possessions would be confiscated. Vladyka Ambrose categorically refused to comply, first because he would not take part in the looting of the monastery of St. Herman, secondly because he couldn't pay the required sum even if he wanted to, and thirdly because the Church was separate from the State and these requisitions constituted interference in the internal affairs of the Church and were therefore counter to the decree on 20 20 freedom of conscience. To their great annoyance, the Financial Committee was forced to back down. On May 3 the Spiritual Consistory came to the Sviyazhsk monastery to investigate the disturbances. Vladyka Ambrose was completely vindicated. On June 6/19, Vladyka was again arrested, this time for refusing to allow the authorities to have offices in the monastery. At about the same time seven marauding Bolsheviks had been killed in Raithu monastery, and Vladyka was accused of having incited this act. Vladyka was placed in the same cell from which two White Guardists had just been taken out to be shot. He stayed there for five days. However, through the intercession of Bishop Anatolius (Grisyuk) and Fr. Nicholas Troitsky, and after the workers of the Alafuzovsky and Porokhovoy factories had threatened to go on strike, Vladyka was released from prison on June 11, the Day of the Holy Spirit. For a time Vladyka settled in the Kazan Spassky-Transfiguration monastery ruled by Archimandrite Joasaph, but he soon decided to return to the Sviyazhsk monastery. There exist three versions of the martyrdom of Vladyka Ambrose. According to the first, which was contained in a report by Archimandrite Theodosius to Bishop Anatolius, on July 26 (old style) some soldiers came to the monastery to requisition bread. Vladyka came out, evidently in order to stop them, and was immediately arrested. He was taken to Sviyazhsk station, where he spent the night in a carriage. The next day, at 7 in the morning, he was seen kneeling and praying with uplifted hands in a field near the station while a shallow grave was being dug for him. Then he was shot, dragged into the grave and covered with earth. According to Protopresbyter Michael Polsky, the Red Army had just entered Kazan and it was Trotsky himself who ordered Vladyka's execution. He was arrested in the monastery and taken together with his cell-attendant, Hierodeacon Job (Protopopov), to Tyurlema station on the Moscow-Kazan railway. There, from the headquarters of the Fifth army, in the carriages of Trotsky's train, Vladyka was taken into a field while Fr. Job was forbidden from following. A few hours later, Fr. Job found him face down with bayonet wounds in his back. For the next twelve years Fr. Job paid the peasant who owned the field not to touch the field near where the body of the hieromartyr was buried in a shallow grave. According to a third version given by the inhabitants of Sviyazhsk (one of whom claimed to have been an eye-witness of these events), Bishop Ambrose was subjected to a terrible trial before his death: he was tied to the tail of a horse which was released to gallop round the island. Then the bloodied but still living bishop was shot somewhere beyond the town. 21 21 A. Zhuravsky is inclined to give the greatest credence to the first of these versions, and considers the third version to be not incompatible with it. On May 18, 1919 the newspaper Ural’skaya Zhizn’ wrote: “20 corpses have thawed out at the Kama by the city Sarapul. There was Deacon Anisimov and one unrecognized priest.” According to the older inhabitants of the region, this unrecognized priest was none other than Bishop Ambrose… 

Visit: the new holy martyrs of Eastern Russia

Sources: Russkiye Pravoslavnye Ierarkhi, Paris: YMCA Press, 1986, p. 12; Protopresbyter Michael Polsky, Noviye Mucheniki Rossijskiye, Jordanville, 1949, vol. I, p. 179, vol. II, p. 99; M.E. Gubonin, Akty Svyateishago Patriarkha Tikhona, Moscow: St. Tikhon's Theological Institute, 1994, p. 961; A.V. Zhuravsky, "Zhizneopisaniye Svyashchennomuchenika Ioasapha, Episkopa Chistopol'skago", Pravoslavnaya Zhizn', 48, N 8 (559), August, 1996, p. 5; A. Zhuravsky, Zhizneopisaniya Novykh Muchenikov Kazanskikh god 1918, Moscow, 1996, pp. 56-92, 201-202; Za Khrista Postradavshiye, Moscow: St. Tikhon’s Theological Institute, 1997, vol. I, pp. 71-72, 91)

MARK 12:1-12

1Then He began to speak to them in parables: "A man planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a place for the wine vat and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country.2 Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that he might receive some of the fruit of the vineyard from the vinedressers.3 And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again he sent them another servant, and at him they threw stones, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated. 5 And again he sent another, and him they killed; and many others, beating some and killing some. 6 Therefore still having one son, his beloved, he also sent him to them last, saying, 'They will respect my son.'7 But those vinedressers said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.' 8 So they took him and killed him and cast him out of the vineyard. 9 Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not even read this Scripture:'The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. 11 This was the LORD's doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes'?" 12 And they sought to lay hands on Him, but feared the multitude, for they knew He had spoken the parable against them. So they left Him and went away.

Commentary of the church Father

St JeromeAD 420: God the Father is called aman by a human conception. The vineyard is the house of Israel; the hedge is the guardianship of Angels; the wine fat is the law, the tower is the temple, and the husbandmen, the priests. The servants who were sent were the prophets, the fruit of the vineyard is obedience; some of the prophets were beaten, others wounded, others slain. Wherefore it goes on: “And they caught him, and beat him, and sent him away empty.”. The well-beloved son and the last is the Only-begotten; and in that He says, “They will reverence my son,” He speaks in irony. Or else, the vineyard is given to others, that is, to those who come from the east, and from the west, and from the south, and from the north, and who sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. This rejected stone, which is borne by that corner where the lamb and the bread met in the supper, ending the Old and beginning the New Testament, does things marvellous in our eyes as the topaz.

1 PETER 1:1-2, 10-12; 2:6-10

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied.

10 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven-things which angels desire to look into.

6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, "Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame." 7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, "The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone," 8 and "A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense." They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. 9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

Commentary of the church Fathers: 

Clement Of Alexandria AD 215: That we are a chosen race by the election of God is abundantly clear. He says royal, because we are called to sovereignty and belong to Christ; and priesthood on account of the oblation which is made by prayers and instructions, by which are gained the souls which are offered to God. Who, when He was reviled, he says, reviled not; when He suffered, threatened not. The Lord acted so in His goodness and patience. But committed Himself to him that judged Him unrighteously: whether Himself, so that, regarding Himself in this way, there is a transposition. He indeed gave Himself up to those who judged according to an unjust law; because He was unserviceable to them, inasmuch as He was righteous: or, He committed to God those who judged unrighteously, and without cause insisted on His death, so that they might be instructed by suffering punishment. For he that will love life, and see good days;

Ignatius of Antioch AD 108: Blessed, then, are ye who are God-bearers, spirit-bearers, temple-bearers, bearers of holiness, adorned in all respects with the commandments of Jesus Christ, being "a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people"

[animala2z]

Donskoy cat: Height, Weight, Life span, Personality Full Information

Also known as the Don Sphynx or Russian Hairless, the Donskoy cat is a medium-sized, muscular cat that, like the Sphynx breed, has less hair due to a genetic mutation in origin. These friendly, active cats are known to be very loyal – in fact, their loyalty is often compared to that of a dog – and they are both intelligent and affectionate.

These curious and playful cats love to be cuddled, but can also be mischievous. Because they are usually quite outgoing and even-tempered, they are perfect for homes with children, other cats, or even dogs. However, they require more grooming than you might expect, and they don’t like to be left alone for long periods of time.

ORIGIN: Russia

Height: 11 – 12 inches

Weight: 6 – 12 pounds

Lifespan: 12 – 15 years

Colors: Hairless, variety of skin colors

Breed Characteristics

The first thing you notice about a Donskoy cat is its appearance. The next thing is likely to be his outgoing, friendly, and inquisitive personality. These cats are almost dog-like in their enthusiasm for time spent with humans, as well as their ability to be trained to come to their name, walk on a leash, or do simple tricks.

They are also very affectionate and love to snuggle, pet, or snuggle up in your bed for a nap.

History

The first founding member of this rare cat breed was first encountered in Russia in 1987 when a professor named Elena Kovaleva rescued a kitten from being abused by a group of boys.

The kitten was partially hairless, causing Elena to try all sorts of treatments in an attempt to restore its coat – but to no avail. After some time, the cat, now named Varvara, had a litter of kittens, some hairy and some hairless. People born with hair soon lost their limbs or all coats, and it was determined that the baldness was a genetic mutation rather than a skin disease.

One of Varvara’s hairless kittens was adopted by a professional breeder named Irina Namiki, who is credited with creating the Donskoy cat breed as we know it today.

The World Cat Federation (WCF) officially recognized them in 1997 and the International Cat Association (TICA) officially recognized the Don Sphynx cat breed in 2005, registering it under the name ‘Donskoy’.

Appearance

The Donskoy is a muscular, medium-sized cat with a triangular head, large ears, and large eyes that give it an elf-like appearance. Its most striking feature is, of course, its lack of hair, although a slight peach fuzz on the ears and nose is common. Many Donskoy cats also lack whiskers. The Donskoy’s skin is very wrinkled, especially on the face, neck, chest, and base of its tail. Petting a Donskoy is often likened to stroking a warm chamois cloth.

Some Donskoy cats grow a light coat of fur during the winter months, but lose it when the weather warms up again.

These cats can have any color of eyes including blue, green, amber, orange, yellow, brown or mixed. They can also be any color or pattern, which is displayed on their skin. However, their colors tend to be quite light or “faded”, and many are very soft grays, creams, or whites.

[amxwolf]

So I got bored with no sharks news with our recent plunge into the offseason and missed my boys so much that I made a thing.

Enjoy this thing.

Also go sharks.

[fantasy-fields-bitty-center]

SwapFell Papyrus Nekomata

Name: Dons

Species: Donskoy cat

Size: 3.6 - 4.6 feet tall (full-size), 1.4 - 2.4 feet tall (mini), 7 - 8 feet tall(bara)

Personality: Affectionate, shy, anxious,

Likes: Warm places, being carried, big spaces, naps, good food, jokes/puns,

Dislikes: Being ignored or feeling forgotten, mean/rude bitties/people, being cold,

Compatibility: They are supper affectionate and love to be cuddles, held, and carried, and will even shyly ask for cuddles when you are free,

They can be more active when they want and are known for being able to keep up with more energetic bitties when they want, but will take a break when they want,

They hate to feel ignored or forgotten and will often try to cuddle when feeling lonely,

They can be a little anxious and are known for getting separation anxiety, for this reason they do best with at least one other bitty around, especially when left alone,

Additional info: They are hairless and can easily get cold, and often prefer a warm house but warm clothes and a heated bed are easy ways to keep them warm in colder houses,

Zone: N/A, Inside,

In Universe: They are seen as strange but also cute and shy, though many dislike the fact they are hairless,

Difficulty: Beginner - Basic

[leebird-simmer]

Russian Fairy Tales Test Prep: Byliny

I. History & Background of Byliny

- singular: bylina - called starina (”old”) by performers - epic poems of legendary heroes - rediscovered in the mid-19th century; collectors took notes by hand while performers sang - performances were improvised; the singer would be accompanied on the gusli - byliny were passed from court minstrels to the peasantry

II. Cycles of Byliny

- Mythological Epics - Kievan Epics - Novgorodian Epics

Svyatogor, Kirill Chelushkin

Kievan Epics were quasi-historical and centered on Kiev, the ancient capital of Rus’. Vladimir, the Grand Prince of Kiev, held feasts at the Royal Court were byliny were performed (and perhaps told to him as royal bedtime stories). Grand Prince Vladimir is not the “hero” of these Kievan epics, but he is often an important part of the plot, and his presence establishes the setting. Over time, his name became shorthand for a generic ancient ruler.

Bogatyrs (1895), Elisabeth Boehm

The Bogatyrs are the heroes of Kievan byliny, equivalent to Camelot’s Knights of the Round Table, but with a roughed-up Viking edge. They protect Rus’ from outside threats, as well as defending widows, orphans, and the poor. In their leisure time, they enjoy romance and hunting.

The three best known bogatyrs are:

1. Ilya Muromets, the ideal Russian hero 2. Dobrynia Nikitich, the diplomatic one 3. Aliosha Popovich, the trickster

Ilya Muromets is the subject of more songs and has a more complete biography than any other bogatyr and/or epic hero. 

- He appears as “Ilyas von Riuzen” in several German & Scandinavian sagas dating from the 12th and 13th centuries. - He is frequently referred to as an “old Cossack,” but “old” here is less indicative of age, but rather seniority/experience/earned respect (16th-17th centuries). - His relics were long believed to lie in a Kiev monastery and he appeared in many tales circulated via chapbooks in the 18th and 19th centuries. - In the 19th century, peasant performers started emphasizing his peasant background.

The enemy in Kievan epics is typically Genghis Khan and his offspring. Historians are not certain that the Tatar Yoke actually happened, but ALLEGEDLY, the timeline went something like this:

1223: Tatars suddenly appear in the southeast, defeat Rus’ at the river Kalka, and then vanish as suddenly as they had appeared. 1237-40: Tatars return and conquer Rus’, demanding tribute and military aid 1240: Kiev falls 1380: Dmitrii Donskoi victorious at Kulikovo Field 1480: Prince Ivan III renounces allegiance to Khan. His grandson Ivan IV (’The Terrible”) moves from Kiev to Moscow and takes the title ‘Tsar.’

Novgorodian epics are also quasi-historical. These epics also combine elements of everyday life, customs, and institutions in Novgorod (dating from the 12th-15th centuries) with folk beliefs, and magical motifs. They typically take place in and around the Novgorod Republic, which was an independent city-state from the 11th-14th centuries.

- “Lord Great Novgorod” carried on trade through river passages with the Baltic region in the west and the Caspian region in the east. They colonized much of the Russian North & western Siberia. - Novgorod belonged to a different cultural zone than the southern city of Kiev and shared many ethnographic features with nearby Scandinavia and with local Finnish groups. - While much of Russia was devastated by the Tatar invasion during the middle of the 13th century, the northwest (including Novgorod) remained largely untouched. - Novgorod was especially known for its merchants, craftsmen, fishermen, sailors, and minstrels (skomorokhs). - They had a democratic assembly called the veche, and were members of the Hanseatic League, an influential medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in central and northern Europe (founded 1356). - Another Novgorod institution was the artel (cooperative), in which all members of a merchant crew swore to observe strict rules of conduct while on a trading voyage, and to share the profits at the end.This practice is alluded to in the most famous Novgorodian epic, Sadko, the only Russian epic in which the main character makes a journey to the otherworld.

[krakenshipwreck]

notes from training camp

the morning session was 45 very well-organized minutes on the ice. john forslund gave us a pep talk about being there for the very first day of training camp, and then players started appearing.

i guess it always takes me a minute to adjust to the scale of hockey players irl? they’re so fucking big. especially jamie oleksiak, man is that guy fucking huge. when you really look at him it’s astounding he can move so well on skates. here he is being taller than gio (they’re the closest two light blue jerseys):

the morning session was the white group, with notable names including giordano, eberle, oleksiak, cale fleury, morgan geekie, luke henman, joonas donskoi, and jared mccann. the goalies were grubauer and d’accord. (d’accord is a cutie and he’s still wearing his sens pads.)

i guess everybody else is the blue group and will be on the ice in the afternoon? sorry i missed haydn fleury and tanev and vince dunn and adam larsson.

it was hard to know what to watch, there was 23 of them and they were all moving very fast and there were a lot of pucks flying! i ended up watching their feet a lot bc now that i’m learning some of this stuff the details of how they skate are very interesting to me. here they are briefly clustered up for instruction:

the best part was when they all clustered up at center ice and the coaches sent groups of 5 to opposite corners to retrieve a puck and take it down the ice to the opposite goal. lots of action at once and it was easy to understand the objective.

morgan geekie looked pretty good to me? he’s a rangy guy and seemed to be beating out defenders.

cale fleury did not necessarily stand out but he’s a good boy and i was happy to see him and what if i made morgan geekie/cale fleury my kraken ship?

mason appleton has sick ginger flow and i’m gonna get interested based on that alone.

everything is extremely on brand, right down to kraken-colored totes for the pucks. we are seattle and we are too good for pickle buckets. here is a tote:

kind of can’t believe they only go for 45 minutes, that went by way too fast. [ETA: oh based on marisa ingemi’s twitter it looks like my group filed off the ice at the main practice rink and went straight to rink 2 for more ice time lol. i was wondering why they all left at that end of the rink instead of toward the dressing room.]

i want to skate in a tracksuit like a hockey coach. how do i make this my lifestyle.

[slugswarriorsdesigns]

I thought we knew of lilac-caramels (taupes), just not fawn ones? Interesting, though, I wasn't actually aware there was a debate on it, especially since some registries (mainly australian/new zealand ones) do recognise them and such... Actually, on the topic of dilutes, have you heard of the pink-eyed dilutes that cropped up in Donskoys? I believe that's have been identified genetically and everything. Granted, I read about that on Messybeast, so take that as you will

Honestly breed specific mutation (rosetting genes, La Perm bleaching) doesn't interest me so much but I'm aware of pink eyed dilution! Also messybeast is very reliable and constantly updating so I don't mind.

For me the caramelized dilutes are just .. another shade of dilute. They probably have seperate genes but it's so rare and specific I'm gonna keep my designs to normal dilute, maybe resembling some caramelized versions but just tagged as the normal color

[krakenbait]

kraken bait: so long and thanks for all the fish!

so... that happened.

the spectacle of the expansion draft was pretty fun- loved the boats, especially the one with the inflatable kraken, and some of the pick videos were nice, like the fish-throwing one and the octopus. i did not appreciate the devils slander (you guys have probably seen my very new jerseyan reaction by now), nor the fact that the dude emcee-ing has probably watched maybe two hockey games in his life (called the canes the “carolina panthers,” called them the “anaheim mighty ducks”).

the draft itself was another thing entirely. i am still very emotional about the kraken separating the superbuddies. i do not know if i will ever get over this. simultaneously, i have no idea who several of the dudes the kraken drafted are.

but those are things for another day. right now, i’m here to go over my kraken bait lists and see what i got right and what i didn’t! this is mostly based off kraken bait 3.5, but i’ll include some references to previous lists if it’s relevant. the actual pick will be bolded and my prediction will be in parentheses, but i’ll bold and italicize it if i got it right. reflection under the cut! (and bonus points if you know the reference in my title)

Anaheim Ducks: Haydn Fleury

i got it right! (he looked very good in the kraken jersey. just sayin’!)

Arizona Coyotes: Tyler Pitlick (Christian Fischer)

i have no idea who the hell tyler pitlick is. at least i recognized christian fischer’s name!

Boston Bruins: Jeremy Lauzon

that’s two! sorry casey

Buffalo Sabres: Will Borgen

that’s three! thanks to The Athletic

Calgary Flames: Mark Giordano

score four for kraken bait! i will be very, very surprised if he’s not the first captain in franchise history

Carolina Hurricanes: Morgan Geekie (Nino Niederreiter)

i have been all over the place on canes predictions. it was haydn fleury, but then he got traded (and then ended up on the kraken anyway). and then it was brock mcginn when i couldn’t think of any one, and then brady skjei according to kinga, and then niederreiter according to corwin when skjei got protected. i do like geekie though, so looking forward to seeing him in seattle!

Chicago: John Quenneville (Nikita Zadorov)

i don’t know who this guy is, aside from that he was drafted by the devils, and that still doesn’t help me much. i still think zadorov might have a chance to end up in seattle if he signs with the kraken, though.

Colorado Avalanche: Joonas Donskoi (JT Compher)

i said it in 3.5, it was always between compher or donskoi after ryan graves got traded. i predicted compher because he was a little younger and a little cheaper, but seattle took donskoi, the more consistent performer. i wish him luck with the kraken and hope his dog enjoys the pacific northwest!

Columbus Blue Jackets: Gavin Bayreuther (Dean Kukan)

who in the world is this?

Dallas Stars: Jamie Oleksiak

that’s five! also, for those of you who need to hear it: tall does not equal attractive

Detroit Red Wings: Dennis Cholowski (Vladislav Namestnikov)

no idea who this is. but the octopus reveal was very fun!

Edmonton Oilers: Adam Larsson (Tyson Barrie)

so i was right that the kraken would end up with a ufa defenseman from the oilers. i just picked the wrong defenseman.

Florida Panthers: Chris Driedger

that’s six! never realized how lanky chris driedger is until i saw him onstage at the expansion draft

Los Angeles Kings: Kurtis MacDermid (Olli Maata)

i never knew what to do with the kings. i feel like the kraken might have felt the same, because i have no idea who the hell this is.

Minnesota Wild: Carson Soucy (Kaapo Kakhonen)

it’s a name i recognize at least? but i’m very surprised that the kraken didn’t take kakhonen. the name pun was right there (kaapo krak-honen!), and i feel like he would have been the better option for a young, cheap goalie (more on that in a bit).

Montreal Canadiens: Cale Fleury (Philip Danault)

i’m happy the fleury bros are on the same team!

Nashville Predators: Calle Jarnkrok

calle jarn-kraken. “my boy calle.” i’m gonna leave it at that.

New Jersey Devils: Nathan Bastian (Andreas Johnsson)

do not talk to me.

New York Islanders: Jordan Eberle

that’s eight!

New York Rangers: Colin Blackwell

that’s nine!

Ottawa Senators: Joey Daccord (Chris Tierney)

the young, cheap goalie the kraken actually took. i kind of understand it because the sens were pretty barren, but as the armchair gm, i’d have gone for kakhonen over daccord.

Philadelphia Flyers: Carsen Twarynski (James van Riemsdyk)

who in the world is this?

Pittsburgh Penguins: Brandon Tanev (Zach Aston-Reese)

should have trusted my gut in the last round and picked tanev instead of keeping aston-reese. oh well. enjoy ghost-spotting in seattle!

San Jose Sharks: Alexander True (Ryan Donato)

i still don’t really know who this is, but resident seattle expert cass has informed me that he played juniors in seattle and scored a big winning goal for them. so welcome back, i guess.

St Louis Blues: Vince Dunn

that’s ten!

Tampa Bay Lightning: Yanni Gourde (Blake Coleman)

should have listened to ana on the gourde suggestion. i picked his linemate, so i guess i was kinda close?

Toronto Maple Leafs: Jared McCann (Travis Dermott) 

the leafs really traded for him for nothing 😂

Vancouver Canucks: Kole Lind (Zack MacEwen)

who in the world is this? and why does he spell his name with a k instead of a c

Washington Capitals: Vitek Vanecek

that’s eleven! and i’m two for three on goalies

Winnipeg Jets: Mason Appleton

“apple pie in a mason jar on skates” makes twelve!

and there you have it! i got 12 right out of 30 picks... which is a lot better than i expected, to be honest. if you were making expansion draft predictions, how many did you get? let me know, come talk about the expansion draft, or just drop by to say hi!

[jgmail]

Ungern como mito y su importancia para nosotros

Por Askr Svarte

Traducción de Juan Gabriel Caro Rivera

 El 15 de agosto del 2016, durante la reconstrucción de una casa en el número 11 de la calle Krasny Prospect, Novosibirsk, fueron descubiertos los cimientos de una antigua red de sótanos interconectados. Al parecer una de las habitaciones de este complejo fue usada como sitio de fusilamiento. Se trata de la “casa de los relojes”, donde se encontraba anteriormente la mansión del comerciante Mashtakov, y no muy lejos de allí se halla la segunda casa de Mashtakov, que hoy en día es una escuela de arte. Los historiadores locales sostienen que ambas casas estaban conectadas por una red de sótanos y pasajes subterráneos. Algunos aseguran que el 15 de septiembre de 1921 el barón von Ungern-Sternberg fue fusilado en el sótano de la casa del comerciante Mashtakov. Antes se pensaba que esto había sucedido en la avenida Kransny 9 (Khud. Ušilyshche), pero con el hallazgo hecho en el edificio 11, ha quedado claro que ambos edificios hacían parte de un complejo subterránea: varios restos de balas fueron encontrados en las paredes, además de muchos perdigones. Otra versión asegura que el barón fue llevado a la Oba de la calle Fabrichnaya, ya que la calle Sverdlov y la calle Kommunisticheskaya se encuentran en el camino a las casas nº9 y 11 de Krasniy Prospekt, respectivamente, y allí están las vías del tren.

 A pesar de que se ha descubierto una localización mucho más plausible en donde pudo suceder la ejecución del barón Ungern, sus restos y pertenencias siguen sin ser hallados todavía. No obstante, surge la siguiente pregunta: ¿por qué deberíamos preocuparnos los paganos tradicionalistas por el destino de un general monárquico blanco fusilado por los bolcheviques y que no sido rehabilitado hasta el día de hoy por ser considerado un “enemigo del pueblo”?

 Una respuesta bastante superficial a esta pregunta la podemos encontrar en la misma biografía del barón Roman Fedorovich von Ungern-Sternberg, nacido en 1886. El barón Ungern ha sido estudiado como figura histórica por varias monografías que exploran los documentos archivísticos y las decisiones judiciales del momento. Pero la figura del barón Ungern tienen mucha más resonancia para los pueblos paganos nativos de Buriatia, al igual que para el chamanismo del Lejano Oriente y Mongolia (muchas veces mezclado con las enseñanzas de Buda, que Ungern siguió), lo que lo hace un oficial y un cosaco blanco bastante inusual. Pero, reiteramos: ¿qué importancia tiene todo eso para nosotros, que pertenecemos al pueblo ruso y a la franja centroeuropea y de Siberia occidental? Responderemos del siguiente modo:

 En primer lugar, todo pagano tradicionalista es por definición un partidario de la superioridad del mito sobre la realidad, siendo esta última nada más que una construcción social positivista y una especie de “contra-mito”. El mito es sagrado, transgresor, activo y sacral: el mito hace parte de nosotros y, por lo tanto, el barón Ungern es antes que nada “un mito”, por lo que no nos interesa su cuerpo físico real o el haber sido una personalidad histórica. El mito es muy polifacético. Ningún otro general blanco ha creado un mito con tanta resonancia y riqueza como el de Ungern, ni siquiera personajes como Kolchak (1) o Deniken (2). El barón Ungern fue un oficial budista del ejercito blanco, la encarnación del Dios de la Guerra Mahakala (3), defensor de las enseñanzas de Buda, libertador de Urga y Mongolia, restaurador de la teocracia de Bogd Khan VIII (4), un tirano cruel y sádico, verdugo de los bolcheviques y los traidores que hacía llover metralla sobre la cabeza de sus enemigos. Todos estos hechos son como un río que se desborda y que fluye sin cesar: se pasa fácilmente de la historia a las leyendas, de las leyendas a los libros y en los libros únicamente encontramos plasmados toda clase de mitos. Roman Fedorovich es sin lugar a dudas una de las figuras más extrañas del movimiento blanco de Siberia y el Lejano Oriente.

 El paganismo ruso contemporáneo busca desesperadamente mitos y figuras históricas que le sirvan como referente para poder construir un eje histórico y moral que le sirva de guía. Es por eso que se intenta descubrir acontecimientos y figuras carismáticas, icónicas y ejemplares que cumplan este papel. Pero mientras la historia antigua era muy rica en esta clase de personajes, la historia moderna es bastante pobre. De todos modos, hay quienes parten del supuesto de que “no existe nada a que aferrarse” y por lo tanto no existe nadie a quien rescatar. Entonces, ¿qué pensamos los tradicionalistas paganos del barón Ungern? Roman Fedorovich no fue realmente un budista, o si lo fue, realmente no lo práctico, ya que el budismo en un estado puro no es sino una forma de nihilismo que niega la Tradición. Sin embargo, el budismo no existe en ninguna parte en estado puro, ya que siempre lo vemos mezclado, en diferentes proporciones, con las tradiciones populares locales. Por lo tanto, podemos decir que se produce el fenómeno de la doble fe, este es el caso del Bön (5), el Zen y todas las variedades de chamanismo siberiano y mongol que han absorbido el budismo y lo han convertido en parte integral de sus creencias. El hinduismo también podría ennoblecer al budismo aportándole su panteón, junto con la influencia de los Upanishads y los sutras. Si partimos de esta tesis, podemos decir que el mito de Ungern tiene muchas influencias paganas, ya que se le atribuye la liberación del monarca de los mongoles, sin hablar de que fue considerado la encarnación del Dios Mahakala. ¿Acaso algún otro ruso ha sido considerado como una Deidad guerrera en Oriente? Y es aquí donde se encuentra el meollo del asunto. El arte marcial es muy importante para el paganismo ruso y lo podemos encontrar en toda nuestra historia: Rurik, Svyatoslav, Alexander Nevsky y Dmitriy Donskoy caben dentro de esta categoría, y aunque los últimos son reivindicados por los ortodoxos, todos ellos eran guiados por una misma cosmovisión y son ejemplos del poder militar ruso. Sin embargo, el paganismo ruso moderno también puede recurrir a arquetipos militares e imágenes culturales que existen en Escandinavia y Alemania, como lo son el paganismo de los vikingos (con sus cascos y espadas), los drakkars, los aegilshjalms, Mjöllnir o las runas. Se trata de préstamos que hace el paganismo ruso de los alemanes con tal de llenar algunas lagunas y vacíos que tiene. Pero volviendo a los primeros años del siglo XX, cuando había estallado la guerra civil del Extremo Oriente, podemos encontrar en Unger un ejemplo excelente de una voluntad indomable, una intrepidez sin par y una temeridad militar sin comparación, en el sentido más noble del término. Julius Evola dice en un artículo titulado “El barón sanguinario” que las raíces alemanas de Roman se remontaban a los vikingos, lo que puede explicar su carácter belicoso y, añadimos nosotros, sombrío y fatalista de su destino, que esta muy en consonancia con los oscuros bosques teutónicos. De todos los caudillos contemporáneos, sólo él fue considerado la encarnación de un Dios de la Guerra indomable y un aventurero sin igual en el campo de batalla. Fue este fuego ardiente del kshatriya lo que llamó la atención de otro barón: al pagano-tradicionalista Julius Evola. Este último comenta que el “desprecio hacia la muerte” de Ungern y la veneración que recibe en Oriente se debe a sus cualidades místicas y a su contacto con los centros iniciáticos de Asia. Una leyenda cuenta que recibió el anillo de Gengis Kan, el cual se decía que otorgaba un gran poder a quien lo tuviera.

 Por otra parte, el rechazo absoluto, total e incondicional del bolchevismo y a la revolución acercan al barón Ungern al tradicionalismo. El bolchevismo es el enemigo existencial de Ungern, un enemigo tanto de Rusia como de la monarquía y de la Tradición, sea esta ortodoxa o cualquier otra como, por ejemplo, el chamanismo y el budismo. Ungern era monárquico y, de hecho, llegó a ser el último monárquico de la Guerra Civil, además de ser partidario de la teocracia y de la sacralidad del poder. Es por esa razón que libera a Mongolia de los chinos y restaura la teocracia de Bogdo Khan. El bolchevismo, como realidad antitradicional y estéril surgida del modernismo, provocó en todos los tradicionalistas del siglo XX una gran repulsión y odio. El barón Evola decía que “la peste bolchevique destruye la Tradición europea”. La gran mayoría de los paganos también consideran que el bolchevismo y sus proyectos izquierdistas deben ser desechados; todos coincidimos en lo mismo: Ungern está del lado de la Tradición contra los ateos bolcheviques. J. Evola afirma que los tradicionalistas, especialmente los paganos, están a favor del mito y lo sagrado y se oponen a la “peste rojo-izquierdista” creada por la Modernidad.

 Evola escribió sobre Ungern lo siguiente:

 “El segundo punto concierne al ideal defendido por Ungern. El combate contra el bolchevismo habría sido la señal de una acción más vasta. Según Ungern, el bolchevismo no era un fenómeno autónomo, sino la última e inevitable consecuencia de procesos involutivos que se han verificado desde hace tiempo en el seno de la civilización occidental. Como antaño Metternich, percibía justamente una continuidad entre las diferentes fases y formas de la subversión mundial, a partir de la Revolución francesa. Ahora bien, según Ungern igualmente, la reacción debería partir de Oriente, de un Oriente fiel a sus tradiciones espirituales y unido, frente al peligro amenazador, con todos aquellos que hubieran sido capaces de una rebelión contra el mundo moderno. La primera tarea habría consistido en eliminar al bolchevismo y liberar Rusia”.

 Visto desde esta perspectiva, el mito de Ungern brilla resplandeciente. Sin embargo, Ungern fue un oficial blanco y un miembro del movimiento blanco. Aquí, y sin entrar en detalles innecesarios, debemos responder a la pregunta: “¿de qué lado se ponen los tradicionalistas paganos en la guerra civil de principios del siglo XX? Respondemos: de ninguno, pues no somos partidarios ni de la ortodoxia “blanca” ni de la “izquierda” sin Dios. No porque sintamos simpatía por el barón Roman Fyodorovich Ungern significa que estemos a favor de los “blancos”, pero tampoco somos partidarios de los “rojos”. Además, ¿significa que estamos a favor del budismo por el hecho de rescatar a Ungern? Tampoco. ¿Somos monárquicos? Creo que podríamos profundizar mucho más en este problema, pero nuevamente este no es el punto.

 Una vez más, debemos concentrarnos en responder las siguientes preguntas: ¿quién fue este barón sanguinario, Ungern, maestro del arte de la guerra y qué debemos recuperar de él los tradicionalistas paganos?

 La primera pregunta la respondemos de la siguiente manera: Ungern no fue un hombre, sino un mito transgresor, es decir, evade la posibilidad de llevar a cabo una definición clara del mismo. Fue un budista, el dios de la guerra Mahakala, un tirano, un aventurero que poseía una voluntad inflexible que lo llevó a acceder a los centros esotéricos e iniciáticos de Asia y también fue un partidario de la Tradición frente a los bolcheviques, que eran defensores de la Modernidad. En todos estos hechos se entremezclan la verdad, la leyenda, los testimonio y la ficción: el mito de la figura de un kshatriya de carácter fuerte hace del barón una figura muy singular de la historia de Rusia y sin duda atrae nuestra atención acerca de su destino.

 El final de su lucha también resulta bastante revelador: Piotr Shchetinkin, comandante de un escuadrón del cuerpo del Ejército Rojo, “derrotó a las bandas de Ungern” y fue coronado con los laureles de la victoria. Cuando escuchamos el apellido “Ungern”, viene a nuestra mente la idea de un hombre que ruge, de forma agresivo y fuerte, contra todos: von Ungern-Sternberg es el nombre de un aristócrata y un guerrero que lleva la sangre de los “kshatriyas” alemanes. En cambio, el nombre de P. Shchetinkin (Щетинкин) suena al gruñido (шипящая) de un gato o al molesto roce de las botas, parecidos a los bramidos de un cerdo. Podríamos decir que se trata de la victoria de lo bajo sobre lo alto, de la plebe y el chandala sin alma moderno sobre el último defensor de la aristocracia del espíritu, el valor y el honor.

 En resumen, podemos decir que el barón Ungern no es ni un representante de los blancos ni de los rojos, tampoco lo podemos considerar un pagano y, desde luego, tampoco puede ser considerado como uno de nuestros héroes. Él es antes que nada él mismo (Selbst) y por eso es un ser mítico que trasciende todo lo que es común y trivial, terrenal e inexistente o todo lo que no tiene valor y contenido. Nadie puede apropiarse realmente de Ungern porque él es su propio soberano, uno estrella que brilla al final del actual Manvantara. Podemos mirar hacia atrás, retomar su mito y voluntad y seguir nuestra propia Tradición.

 Mientras tanto, la versión oficial sobre el origen de la metralla en el sótano del antiguo comerciante Mashtakov dice que fue causada por una granada que se utilizó a la hora de demoler los cimientos de la casa para poder construir la “casa de los relojes”. No es necesario decir que resulta bastante estúpido destruir los cimientos de ladrillo y granito con la metralla de una granada, especialmente cuando estos se encuentran enterrados en lo profundo de la tierra. Una vez más presenciamos como se sustituyen los escupitajos en la cara y las sonrisas del pelotón de fusilamiento de la Cheka con el aburrido informe protocolario de que se “detonó una granada con metralla para hacer volar los cimientos de una casa”. Se trata del triunfo de la aburrida prosaización del mundo de Shchetinkin frente al martirio de Ungern. Y esta versión será sin duda popular entre las masas.

 No obstante, el cráneo y los huesos del barón yacen en lo profundo de las entrañas de Novonikolaevsk-Novosibirsk. Sus restos todavía nos eluden, como sucede a menudo con todos los santos y sabios asiáticos.

 En homenaje al 95º aniversario de la ejecución del barón Ungern.

 15.09.2016

 Notas del Traductor:

 1. Aleksandr Vasílievich Kolchak fue un marino, militar y explorador del Ártico ruso, caudillo del movimiento antibolchevique conocido como Movimiento Blanco durante la guerra civil rusa que dirigió en Siberia un Gobierno opuesto al Gobierno de Lenin desde noviembre de 1918 a febrero de 1920.

2. Antón Ivánovich Denikinfue un militar ruso y​ uno de los principales líderes del Movimiento Blanco durante la guerra civil rusa.

3. Mahakala es una de las más importantes divinidades protectoras dentro del budismo Vajrayana (budismo tibetano) perteneciente al grupo de los Dharmapalas (protectores del Dharma) de tipo airado, denominados herukas. Mahakala es al mismo tiempo un yidam, una deidad de meditación. La palabra Mahakala deriva del sánscrito maha (“grande”) y kala (“negro”). El nombre tibetano es Gonpo Phyag. En el budismo japonés se le conoce como Daikoku. Según cuenta la tradición tibetana es un antiguo demonio que fue convertido por los budas Manjushri y Avalokiteshvara en protector del Dharma. La tradición tibetana cuenta que Mahakala lucha contra el mal en el propio infierno, siendo su misión guiar a los seres de la oscuridad a la luz. Mahakala tiene la naturaleza de Chenrezig a pesar de su aspecto infernal. Se le conoce también como “señor del viento” y con su aspecto y forma airada protege a los discípulos y cumple la función de ayudar a disolver todo tipo de obstáculos y negatividades que impiden el camino espiritual. Estos factores pueden ser externos o condicionamientos internos, tales como el miedo, el odio, el orgullo o la envidia. Frente a estos factores, Mahakala protege a los discípulos y su fiera expresión derrota a estos condicionamientos.

4. El Bogd Khan fue el primer y único Kan de Mongolia tras la declaración de independencia de la dinastía Qing el 29 de diciembre de 1911. También fue el líder espiritual del budismo tibetano en Mongolia siendo la octava reencarnación de Jebtsundamba Kutuktu. Durante los primeros años de su reinado se instauró en Mongolia una teocracia parlamentaria.

5. El Bön es una antigua tradición chamánica y animista tibetana anterior a la llegada del budismo. El Bön influyó mucho en las creencias del Budismo Tibetano, creando una especie de sincretismo religioso.

[axiomsofice]

Col

The Avs are entering a window in which they will ice a team among the best in decade. It doesn’t always translate to cups right away (see Tampa Bay) but they will have a good a shot as any from this point into the foreseeable future. Landeskog/MacKinnon/Rantanen has been a staple on a shortlist of the league’s best for the past couple seasons, but the rest of the team has really filled out. The rest of the forward group is slotted really nicely in support, Burakovsky/Kadri/Saad brings a variety of skills, speed, and intensity, Nichushkin/Jost/Donskoi are so effective, any fourth line with one of Bellemare or Calvert would look good. But the greatest change has cone on defence. Maker is otherworldly, leading the charge in group of young defenders ascending into perennial Norris conversation. Girard has looked like a super charged Letang/Hughes combination stylistically for a few seasons, but is finally converting that into a more profound dominance. Devon Toews was probably one of the best moves of the offseason. From there everyone else has been thriving. MacDonald has cone out of nowhere. Even when Makar missed games due to injury they almost haven’t missed a beat. And to top it all off serious help is still on the way, as Newhook and Bryan look poised to grow into key roles in the near future. Goalie health remains the main issue, but when everyone’s available there’s nothing not to like about where this franchise is. Sakic v Yzerman still going strong.

Vgk

Vegas has the Midas touch for sure, and this team is very established at this point. Their defence group is the best it’s been, Pietrangelo is the big addition joining Theodore as central pieces on the top 2 pairings, but we’re starting to see some Vegas draftees make impacts. Hague, Whitecloud, and Coughlin have all had strong seasons and that definitely raises the quality of the roster. In a way, they are a lot like what the Rangers are hoping to become, especially given both teams plethora of skilled wingers. Stone and Pacioretty among the best top line duos. Marchessault/Karlsson/Smith are still boarder line elite (as a compliment). Tuch is overqualified. Kolesar has fit in really nicely. This whole team is big and tough and definitely is a huge part of the team’s identity, as such even though the centre group is a little underwhelming for a top tier team, role players like Stevenson and Roy have been able to be effective in key positions in the lineup. It would be really exciting to see a young player like Cody Glass run away with the top line, but that seems unlikely to be the case this season.

Min

I recently wrote about the Wild so I’ll just point you to that.

Stl

A year removed from their first Cup, things have been a bit tumultuous for the Blues. Tarasenko is back and seems to be regaining his form, and the team needs him to be their top offensive threat. Goaltending is notoriously difficult to project, if not mystical, but I’m not necessarily a huge Binnington fan. I do see him as a tandem starter, meaning I think it is key to have someone behind him pushing the envelope a bit(FWIW I wouldn’t have him on my team Canada). Overall I’d say I’m a bit curious as to how the blueline has been handled, ie Faulk and Krug but not Pietrangelo, but this team is probably better than they’ve shown so far? I think my decision to put them below the Wild here is deserved, despite having a nice breakout from Jordan Kyrou.

Ari

At its best this roster is definitely plucky, feisty, definitely coyote-like in being scavengers more so than apex predators. There’s definitely some skills, a renaissance year for Kessel, Schmaltz and Keller have been pretty good, Garland is probably their best forward at this point though. Chychrun is really good and has needed to be with Hjalmarsson and Ekman-Larson being varying shades of their former selves. The team definitely puts its goaltenders in positions to succeed, enough so that despite the vast array of off ice dysfunction that defines the Coyotes’ existence, the on ice product has been far and away the best part of the franchise. Without much draft capital it will be interesting to see how the coming months will be approached.

La

Cal Peterson has been good in net. Doughty’s been a positive impact which is relieving. This team has a lot of good forward prospects on the way, so there should be a lot of internal competition for those spots in the coming years. With names like Byfield, Thomas, Turcotte, Kaliyev, and even Madden, Kupari, and Fagemo surely to push for jobs in the near future, how will the likes of Vilardi, Kempe, Anderson-Dolan and Lizotte hold them off? How much longer will veterans like Carter, Brown, and Iafallo be around for? Especially if 1-2 younger defencemen start to really step up, the Kings could easily be competing for a playoff spot as soon as next season.

Ana

Not quite the same as the Kings, but the Ducks do have a very exciting prospect pool. Zegras and Drysdale have already got a few games under their belts. Younger roster players are having a greater impact, like Comtois and Lundestrom, even Max Jones. Hakanpaa has earned top minutes on the blueline which is probably a little known fact. It would make sense to see one of the more established players, like Rakell or Manson or something, get moved if the package is right. The Ducks usually seem to have an internal cap, and I would suggest they have a pretty strong drafting and development record, so their path forward is most likely to rely on said avenues.

Sj

Maybe being in a division with La and Ana has helped the Sharks look a bit better? Either way, there’s just a lot of term, dollars, and 30+ year old players and not a lot of flexibility. I really don’t love the goaltending situation but it’s been better than last season. There is some talent here tho. It’s easy to think of Nashville being in a similar spot, although Nashville might even have a few more options. At least they have their 1st round pick this year, and I have caught myself thinking about how a certain 3rd overall pick in Ottawa would change the Sharks’ ceiling. Although that might not sound like a good thing, it does point to an infusion of talent being able to go a long way here.

[stateofsport211]

Busan Ch R2: Gabriel Diallo [8] def. Yunseong Chung [WC] 7-6(5), 7-6(4) Match Stats

📸 ATP Challenger Livestream (via website)

It was surely a close match, but Diallo was the most consistent under pressure throughout both sets. Not only he capitalized on Y. Chung's errors, but he also came up with several shot winners along the way.

The consistency was visible in his service games, where he scored more than three-fold aces (11 to 3) than Y. Chung. Furthermore, he won 8% more points from his first serves, while Y. Chung's 4 double faults made him fall 2% behind in terms of points won from the second serves.

Furthermore, Y. Chung had his chances to break, mostly as a result of Diallo's forehand errors. They were the dominant reasons why he converted only one-fifth of them as a result of Diallo's clutch serves, even if it sometimes took ages for him to hold his serves. On the other hand, Diallo maximized his chances by converting 66% of his break opportunities thanks to controlling the rally from the baseline. His cross-court approach could be costly, sometimes, but they paid off once it consistently hit the target. As a result, he stood out in both tie-breakers as well.

Third seed Jordan Thompson awaits in the quarterfinals, as he came back from 1-4 down in the first set to defeat Evgeny Donskoy 7-5, 6-3. Straight from his title in Gwangju last week with 7 win streak, this could be an interesting encounter for Diallo, given the form and rich experience J. Thompson has, especially from the baseline. However, who knows what until game, set, match is called.

[orthodoxydaily]

Saints&Reading: thu., Oct. 7, 2020

Commemorated on September 2_according to the Julian calendar

The Monk Sergei of Radonezh

     The Monk Sergei of Radonezh was born in the village of Varnitsa, near Rostov, on 3 May 1314. His parents were the pious and illustrious boyar-nobles Kirill and Maria. The Lord forechose him while still in his mother's womb. In the Vita of the Monk Sergei it reports, that at Divine Liturgy even before the birth of her son, Righteous Maria and those praying heard the thrice-repeated cry of the infant: before the reading of the Holy Gospel, during the time of the Cherubim hymn, and when the priest pronounced: "Holy Things to the Holy". God gave Kirill and Maria a son, whom they named Bartholomew. From his very first days of life the infant amazed everyone by his fasting, on Wednesdays and Fridays he would not accept milk from his mother, and on other days, if Maria used oil in the food, the infant likewise refused the milk of his mother. Noticing this, Maria refrained altogether from food with oil. At seven years of age Bartholomew was sent to study together with his two brothers – his older brother Stefan and his younger brother Peter. His brothers learned successfully, but Bartholomew fell behind in his studies, even though the teacher gave him much special attention. The parents scolded the child, the teacher chastised him, and his fellow-classmates made fun of his lack of comprehension. Finally in tears Bartholomew besought of the Lord to grant him the bookish understanding. One time his father sent Bartholomew out after the horses in the field. Along the way he met an Angel sent by God under the guise of appearance of a monk: the starets-elder stood at prayer beneathe an oak amidst the field. Bartholomew approached him, and bowing, waited for the elder's finish of prayer. That one blessed him, gave him a kiss and asked, what he wanted. Bartholomew answered: "With all my soul I want to learn reading and writing, holy father, pray for me to God, that He help me to become literate". The monk fulfilled the request of Bartholomew, raising up his prayer to God, and in blessing the lad he said to him: "From henceforth God giveth thee, my child, to understand reading and writing, and in this wilt thou surpass thy brothers and peers". With this the elder took forth a vessel and gave Bartholomew a portion of prosphora-bread: "Take, child, and eat, – said he. – This is given thee as a sign of the grace of God and for the understanding of Holy Scripture". The elder wanted to depart, but Bartholomew asked him to visit at the home of his parents. His parents received their guest with joy and offered him their hospitality. The starets answered, that first it is proper to partake of spiritual nourishment, and he bade their son to read the Psalter. Bartholomew began harmoniously to read, and his parents were amazed at the change that had happened with their son. In parting, the elder prophetically predicted about the Monk Sergei: "Great shalt be your son before God and the people. He shalt become a chosen habitation of the Holy Spirit". After this the holy lad read without difficulty and understood the contents of books. And with an especial fervour he became immersed in prayer, not missing a single Divine-service. Already in childhood he imposed upon himself a strict fast, he ate nothing on Wednesdays and Fridays, and on the other days he sustained himself on bread and water.

In about the year 1328 the parents of the Monk Sergei resettled from Rostov to Radonezh. When their older sons married, Kirill and Maria shortly before their death accepted the monastic schema at the Khot'kov monastery of the Protection of the MostHoly Mother of God, not far from Radonezh. And later on, the older brother Stefan as a widower accepted monasticism at this monastery. Having buried his parents, Bartholomew together with his brother Stefan withdrew for wilderness-dwelling into the forest (12 versts from Radonezh). At first they made cells, and then a not-large church, and with the blessing of metropolitan Theognost, it was consecrated in the Name of the Mos tHoly Trinity. But soon, unable to bear the difficulties of life in the wilderness, Stefan left his brother and went on to the Moscow Theophany monastery (where he became close with the Monk Alexei, afterwards Metropolitan of Moscow – Comm. 12 February).      Bartholomew on 7 October 1337 accepted tonsure into monasticism from hegumen Mitrophan, taking the name of the holy Martyr Sergios (Comm. 7 October), and he set about the start of a new habitation to the glory of the Life-Originating Trinity. Suffering temptations and demonic apparitions, the Monk Sergei advanced from strength to strength. Gradually he became known to other monks, seeking his guidance. The Monk Sergei accepted all with love, and soon in the small monastery were gathered a brethren of twelve monks. Their experienced spiritual guide distinguished himself by an extraordinary love for work. With his own hands he built several cells, he carried water, he chopped wood, baked bread, sewed clothing, prepared food for the brethren and humbly took on other tasks. The Monk Sergei combined the heavy work with prayer, vigil and fasting. The brethren were amazed, that with such severe exertion the health of their guide did not deteriorate, but rather became all the more hearty. It was not without difficulty that they implored the Monk Sergei to accept being hegumen over the monastery. In 1354 the Volynsk bishop Athanasii consecrated the Monk a priest-monk and elevated him to the dignity of hegumen. Just as before at the monastery, monastic obediences were strictly fulfilled. With the expansion of the monastery grew also its needs. Often the monks had only scant food, but through the prayers of the Monk Sergei unknown people provided the necessities.      Reports about the exploits of the Monk Sergei became known even at Constantinople, and Patriarch Philotheos sent to the Monk a cross, a "paraman" [or "paramandia" – a monk's article of clothing, a four-cornered cloth tied with cords to the chest and worn beneathe other garb, and adorned with symbols of the Lord's Passion] and schema-robe in blessing for new deeds, and a grammota-document of blessing, in which the patriarch counselled the chosen of God to organise a coenobitic (life-in-common) monastery. The Monk set off with the Patriarchal missive to Saint Alexei, and received from him the counsel to introduce a strict manner of life-in-common. The monks began to grumble at the strictness of the monastic ustav-rule, and the Monk Sergei was compelled to forsake the monastery. At the River Kirzhach he founded a monastery in honour of the Annunciation of the MostHoly Mother of God. Matters at the former monastery went quickly into disarray, and the remaining monks recoursed to Saint Alexei, that he should get the saint to return.      The Monk Sergei unquestioningly obeyed the sainted-hierarch, and left in place of himself at the Kirzhachsk monastery his disciple, the Monk Roman.      Already during his lifetime the Monk Sergei had been vouchsafed a graced gift of wonderworking. He resuscitated a lad, at a point when the despairing father had given up on his only son as lost. Reports about the miracles worked by the Monk Sergei began quickly to spread about, and the sick began to come to him, both from the surrounding villages and also from remote places. And no one left from the Monk without receiving healing of infirmities and edifying counsel. Everyone gave glory for the Monk Sergei, and reverenced him on an equal with the ancient holy fathers. But human glory did not hold allure for the great ascetic, and as before he remained the example of monastic humility.      One time Saint Stephen, Bishop of Perm (Comm. 27 April), – who deeply revered the Monk Sergei, was on journey from his diocese to Moscow. The road-way passed off eight versts distant from the Sergiev monastery. Intending to visit the monastery on his return trip, the saint stopped, and having recited a prayer, he bowed to the Monk Sergei with the words: "Peace be to thee, spiritual brother". At this instant the Monk Sergei was sitting at refectory-meal with the brethren. In reply to the blessing of the sainted-hierarch, the Monk Sergei rose up, recited a prayer, and made a return blessing to Saint Stephen. Certain of the disciples, astonished at the extraordinary action of the Monk Sergei, hastened off to the indicated place, and became convinced of the veracity of the vision.      Gradually the monks began to witness also other similar actions. One time during Liturgy an Angel of the Lord served together with the Monk, but the Monk Sergei in his humility forbade anyone to tell about this before the end of his life on earth.      The Monk Sergei was connected with Saint Alexei by close bonds of spiritual friendship and brotherly love. Saint Alexei in his declining years summoned the Monk Sergei to him and besought him to accept to be Russian Metropolitan, but Blessed Sergei in humility declined to be primate.      The Russian Land at this time suffered under the Mongol-Tatar Yoke. Having gathered an army, Great-prince Dimitrii Ioannovich Donskoy went to monastery of the Monk Sergei to ask blessing in the pending struggle. The Monk Sergei gave blessing to two monks of his monastery to render help to the great-prince: the schema-monk Andrei (Oslyaba) and the schema-monk Aleksandr (Peresvet), and he predicted the victory for prince Dimitrii. The prophecy of the Monk Sergei was fulfilled: on 8 September 1380, on the feastday of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God, Russian soldiers gained a total victory over the Tatar hordes at Kulikovo Pole (Kulikovo Field), and set in place the beginning of the liberation of the Russian Land from the Mongol Yoke. During the time of the fighting the Monk Sergei together with the brethren stood at prayer and besought God to grant victory to the Russian forces.      For his angelic manner of life the Monk Sergei was granted an heavenly vision by God. One time by night Abba Sergei was reading the rule of prayer beneathe an icon of the Most Holy Mother of God. Having completed the reading of the canon to the Mother of God, he sat down to rest, but suddenly he said to his disciple, the Monk Mikhei (Comm. 6 May), that there awaited them a wondrous visitation. After a moment the Mother of God appeared accompanied by the holy Apostles Peter and John the Theologian. Due to the extraordinary bright light the Monk Sergei fell down, but the MostHoly Mother of God touched Her hands to him, and in blessing him promised always to be Protectress of his holy monastery.      Having reached old age, and foreseeing his own end six months beforehand, the Monk summoned the brethren to him and blessed as hegumen his disciple the Monk Nikon (Comm. 17 November), who was experienced in the spiritual life and obedience. In tranquil solitude the Monk reposed to God on 25 September 1392. On the eve beforehand the great saint of God summoned the brethren a final time and turned to them with the words of last-instruction: "Brethren, be attentive to yourselves. Have first the fear of God, purity of soul and love unhypocritical...".

© 1996-2001 by translator Fr. S. Janos.

Luke 6:17-23 

17And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases,18 as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed.19 And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all. 20 Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: Blessed are you poor, For yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are you who hunger now, For you shall be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, For you shall laugh. 22 Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man's sake. 23 Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.

Galatians 5:22-6:2 

22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

1Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. 2 Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

[anne-lister-adventures]

Sunday, 16 February 1840

7 40/’’

12 35/’’

i.e. 7 40/’’ by the clocks here by which time we must now go – Trying to read the Russian Affiche over my door – The price of wines, &c. Donskoi at 4/- the bottle – Very fine sunny morning – Breakfast at 9 50/’’ George said when I called him at 9 to see about a Traineau that it was Reaumur -25º out of doors – Breakfast in an hour – 

Out at 11 1/2 – The Traineau not quite ready but came to us at the Kremlin at 11 3/4 – Went into the 1st church – Could not see much – Full of poor people came away – Got into our Traineau and drove to the Convent des Femmes where is the famous Vierge de Kazan – The superior not at home ∴[therefore] could not see the summer church of large, handsome exterior but went into the winter church where the richly coiffed Vierge sojourns during this  season – 

The Bogoroditsky Monastery where Anne and Ann saw the Mother of God of Kazan. Lithograph by Professor Edward Turnerelli.

Her every day coiffure = 60,000/- but her dress one = ten times that sum one diamond in it is worth 60,000/- - All this in the Trésor which we may see on application to the supérieure – The church not very lofty but well proportioned and handsome – The vaulted ceiling of the nave painted (dark blue outline) in square panels with a patera in the centre of each – 

Copy of the Mother of God of Kazan. The original was allegedly stolen and destroyed.

One arcade parted off for the vestibule – 4 arcades over which a balustraded gallery for the nuns in the nave; and then the handsome dome springing from 4 large arches and close beyond this dome the iconostase and apparently the same length as the nave and vestibule, i.e. 5 arcades length, taken up by the préstole (altar) and its appurtenances – the space left all in one – Not divided as in general into 3, the middle for the altar, and the 2 rooms, one on each side, for the priests, - A sort of vestry – 

Gave the nun who civilly shewed us the Virgin a ten S.[Silver] Kopek piece which seemed to be enough for the little she had done – The exterior of the wall that encloses this convent is strikingly tartar and picturesque

the curtain between each pair of broad pilasters has a pointed Equilateral Triangular battlement with a double round topped loop-hole recess under each apex i.e.

there is one recess within another – Each of about 6 in.[inches] deep – Brick work white washed – The effect of these Tartar walls and buildings depends much up these brick work recesses and mouldings, and plasterwork, and paint –

There seems to be not much left that was here in Tartar Times except an old Tower and some other building near to it that George said was a Tartar Mosque and Fort – The tower is brick – In decay – In 5 or 6 retiring grades crowned with a pyramid, very picturesque – 

The Söyembikä Tower is likely the building Anne described, which is presented here in a lithograph by Professor Edward Turnerelli.

We then drove to a Mosque – Open – Service – Went in for a minute or 2 – Only the people – The priest not arrived – Plain and carpeted – Much the same as at Moscow, but the exterior arabesque i.e. ornamented à la Tatar – A square on arches, and mouldings about the windows and a picturesque looking building but rather cracking and seeming to want some repairs – 

The Apanaeev Mosque, here seen in a lithograph by Professor Turnerelli, was one of the mosques in Kazan at the time Anne and Ann visited the city. The style is similar to what Anne describes, though it’s possible that this wasn’t the mosque they visited.

Then drove along the Tartar Town along the Kasanka river, and pursued its bed and drove all round that side of the Town in the bed of river for some distance – Drove under the modern square Tower built on the spot where the breach was made when the Russians took the town from the Tartars in 1552 – Interesting – 

Came back to the Town up one of the deep clefts in the high sand-rock on which the Town and fort-walls are here built – Then when on the hill, turned left a little way and passed under the curves gateway to the Great Road to Perm and Siberia – Nearly opposite this gateway at a little distance is the handsome large pile of building, the military hospital, and not far off on the same side as the Siberia Gate is a church and the large cemetery of the Town – Drove a little way on this great road – But on this high ground the wind so piercing that we turned back – Nothing to be seen forwards towards Siberia but one wide plain with hardly any wood upon it – 

On our return drove to the Raskolmick church a small rather Russian Greek like church of no great appearance situated in a court, and not far from the Boutanka Canal – Passed the back, the observatory part, and the long line of handsome front of the university in returning – It is a long line with a 12 columned pediment in the middle and terminated by a 6 columned pediment at each end – The street in which is the University seems long and handsome (the handsomest in the Town?) and the other good streets seem to run parallel with it –

The Kazan University in 1832.

The General Governor’s House is in the University Street – But it seems Professor Eversmann’s house is somewhere near the Siberia Gate – And Madame Lapteff’s somewhere near the Convent des Femmes? 

Home at 2 55/’’ – A little benumbed with the cold, against which my head not being sufficiently guaranteed, I had to hold tight the satin wadded bonnet every now and then which benumbed my hands – 

Amused? With the style of countess A[Alexandrine] Panin’s letter to her cousin and copied it       see the other end this book    her manner of mentioning us is not the nicest?        She calls A[Ann] my companion       but she deserves this ssince she would not be pleased to be thought my niece        the fact is             she has sso little that is taking about her that they know not what to make of her      especially as she is no relation princess RRadziwil once asked why I had such a person so unsuited but I passed it over and she had too much tact ever to repeat the observation     I said I could not do without her she kept house for me not everyone would travel about with me and I must have someone – 

At 4 1/2 sent by George Mr. Boutourline’s letter

M.[Monsieur] B-[Boutourline]         À Son Excellence, Monsieur le Général, Strekeleff Aide de Camp General de S.[Sa] M.[Majesté] L’Empereur, Gouverneur Militaire de Kazan &c. &c.   à Kazan.

Mr. Fischer.                                        À Momnsieur le Professeur, d’Eversmann, à Casan. De la part, de G. Fischer.

Countess A.[Alexandrine] Panin       Madame, Madame de Lapteff, à Kazan.

This letter being unsealed put it under sealed cover with A-‘s[Ann’s] card and my own – And sent A-‘s[Ann’s] and my own also chez le General Gouverneur – But merely the letter to the Professor – 

Then changed my dress and had my hair done – Dinner at 5 1/4 – A diner complet Russe, pour une personne just enough for us two = 2/50 and had a bottle of Donskoi wine 4/- to drink the happy returns of the 10th inst. – 

The véritable sixth anniversary we dined chez le General Gouverneur of and at Nijeni – Drank health to A-‘s[Ann’s] sister and her family and her Aunt, and Marian – And all our friends round the Wrekin – Our friends at Nijney and Prince George of Georgia – Our friends at Moscow and La Charmante Princess R-[Radziwil] our own Queen, and the Emperor and Empress and Imperial Family –The wine good – The champagne? They have given us at every dinner? 

Then till now 10 1/2 (tea at 8 in about 1/2 hour) wrote the whole of today – Sat up looking at Map of Russia and the few notes I have brought – Unluckily I have left behind at Moscow all my notes from Lord Royston cum multis aliis!!! It is useless to give myself the trouble of making notes for a journey if I thus leave them –

[in the margin of the page:]             Picturesque wall

Page References:  SH:7/ML/E/24/0016 and  SH:7/ML/E/24/0017