#note by prosperity I mean more than material wealth

[celticcrossanon]

BRF Reading - 22nd of February, 2023

This is speculation only

Cards drawn on the 23rd of February, 2023

Question: Is Meghan staging another pregnancy (real or moonbump, whatever you believe)?

Interpretation: She is preparing the ground to use it as a weapon of last resort.

Card One: The King of Pentacles, reversed.

This is the card for the zodiac sign Taurus and is my card for the late Queen as a person. Seeing this card here reminds me of something I read a few days ago - that Meghan wanted to announce a pregnancy at Her Late Majesty's funeral and was prevented from doing so. I don't know any more than that; the rumour did not give details.

As a general situation, the King of Pentacles is about money, wealth and status. This is a person that is good with money, someone who has built up a lot of resources so they are in a position of material wealth, whatever that means to them. They are a stable presence who looks after their people and is protective of those they love.

Reversed, the King of Pentacles is someone who has no wealth. They have squandered their resources and are in a position of poverty (however that appears to them). They are stubborn, greedy, and materialistic, judging by appearances and not by what is underneath, and they will do anything to get wealth and status, which they will them promptly squander on indulging themselves (drink/drugs/gambling/any sort of excess) instead of husbanding it and making to grow to provide security for the future. This person tries to increase their wealth by get-rich-quick schemes, dodgy deals, taking shortcuts etc. What they will not do is put in the hard work to grow a prosperous business over the years from whatever starting capital they have.

The King of Pentacles in reverse sounds like Meghan Markle to me.

That being so, the message of this card is that Meghan is desperate for money. She has no financial resources, no financial security, and she is squandering any money she gets as soon as she gets it, if not before.

Note that the card that represents Meghan, the King of Pentacles, is in the reverse. As an answer to a pregnancy question that means No, the person is not pregnant.

Card Two: The Eight of Swords.

This is a card of being very stressed and of being trapped in a situation or a mindset of your own making.

If we look at the card, we see a young man, representing Meghan, standing in a half circle of swords that prevent him from going forwards. Swords represent thoughts, the truth, clarity of mind, so Meghan (the young man) is trapped either by her own thoughts or by truths that she does not want to be revealed.

On one side are the Furies, watching the young man/Meghan closely, and the young man/Meghan is looking at them with an expression of terror. The Furies, to my mind, represent the press and people that Meghan has maligned, but mainly the press. They know the truth, and they are watching her, waiting for her to slip up. Meghan is trapped as she can't call them out without revealing the lies she has told, and she can't think of any way out of the situation by herself. She is terrified that the press will spill all her secrets.

On the other side is the god Apollo, representing the BRF, watching the situation with folded arms. There is no hand outstretched to help, so there will be no help coming from the BRF.

Notice that the swords only block forward movement. The way out for the young man/Meghan is to retreat, to walk backwards until they are out of the half circle of swords and then to walk around it. Retreating here means for Meghan to retract whatever thoughts/statements/lies have gotten her into this situation, and then to avoid repeating those thoughts/statements/lies in the future. In other terms, she has to eat her words. I can't see this happening, as Meghan refuses to admit that she would be wrong, but that would be a way out of the situation in which she feels trapped.

Note that swords can also represent the law or medical matters, so this could be a situation concerning the law (Samantha's lawsuit, perhaps?) or some medical matter (such as surrogacy).

Card Three: The Nine of Wands.

Nine is the number of months associated with a pregnancy, and wands are PR, so straight away this tells me that the 'pregnancy' is a PR pregnancy. It is not real (that would be cups or pentacles), and given the preceding card, it is probably something that Meghan has ready to pull out of the bag to free herself from the current situation in which she feels trapped (for example, in worked to get a deferment in her past court case, so why not in this one with her sister?)

The Nine of Wands is a card of standing your ground and defending yourself when you are exhausted. It is the card of one last battle, one last defence, and then you are safe and can rest for a while. This tells me that Meghan's PR pregnancy will be used as a last defence, a final shield that she hopes will shield her from whatever it is that is stressing her out. She will use it as a battle tactic to defend herself, or at least to gain some time.

The card shows the ship Argo attempting to sail through the Clashing Rocks on its way to home and safe harbour, seen beyond the rocks. The Clashing Rocks were two huge rocks that smashed together whenever a ship tried to sail between them, crushing any ship and killing the crew. In the story, Jason passes through the rocks by releasing a dove and seeing how fast it flies to get through the rocks unscathed, and then the crew of the ship row at that speed to pass through the rocks. The dove loses some tail feathers but is otherwise unharmed, the Argo loses its the end of its stern but is otherwise unscathed (and is still seaworthy).

The dove flew through the rocks in a specified time, and that was the time the crew knew they had to row the ship through the rocks with minimal hard. Meghan will most likely use her PR pregnancy as that period of time, a time during which she can not be crushed by the rocks/the media, and after that time, when she thinks the public interest will have died down, she hopes to escape relatively unscathed from whatever this situation is in which she feels trapped.

Wands can be a creative idea that you are trying to manifest in the world. If this is the meaning of the wands suit here, then Meghan is trying to become pregnant/hire a surrogate but so far she has been unable to do so. In that case, this card shows she has another large battle to fight and win before she can become pregnant/hire a surrogate. This meaning can co-exist with using the pregnancy as a PR weapon.

Underlying Energy: The Tower.

Underneath the above reading lies the energy of the Tower. Something has happened, or is going to happen very soon, that will completely destroy a part of Meghan's life or self image and leave her to rebuild it from the ruins. This could be the South Park episode, or it could be something else that Meghan knows is coming.

The Tower card represents the planet Mars. Mars is the warrior planet, the planet of anger, war, and willpower (also desire, especially sexual desire). The energy of this card is of a person or group of people who are angry at Meghan's behaviour and they are coming for her with the intention of destroying her. The energy feels personal - it is pointed and direct, not cool and detached. It also feels as if the person or group of persons have been waiting for a long time to be able to destroy the false image that Meghan has erected around herself in one particular area (I have no idea what that area is, sorry).

The card shows the Tower on an island, in the midst of a stormy see, with the god Neptune/Poseidon taking aim at the Tower with his trident. Water in tarot represents feeling, so someone has very strong feelings. Those feelings are what are prompting them to destroy the Tower, i.e. to take Meghan down.

This is the only major arcana card in this reading and as such it is the main energy of the reading.

Conclusion

Any current pregnancy of Meghan's appears in this reading as a PR pregnancy, one that is not real but that will be used to shield Meghan from a very stressful situation in which she finds herself (the 'I'm pregnant and fragile and can't be upset' narrative). Meghan will use this pregnancy to gain a breathing space, after which she hopes to have either stopped the situation from being exposed in the press or so much time has passed that the news is not irrelevant. She is currently lacking in financial resources and squandering any money that she does have, and that could relate somehow to the situation in which she finds herself - she has no money to e.g. buy off the press or to spend on positive PR. Underlying this stressful situation is Tower energy, an event that has happened or that is about to happen that will completely destroy part of her life and leave her to rebuild it from rubble.

Meghan is not physically pregnant, but she is putting out PR that she is pregnant so if necessary she can use the pregnancy as a shield against her current situation, particularly to buy herself time. The current situation could be legal matters or medical matters, or both, and it may have arisen from her lack of material resources (wealth and status). She may take steps to make this pregnancy a reality in the future, but at this point of time it is not manifest in the physical world.

[dailygodlymessage]

Count The Cost

Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow after me cannot be my disciple

Luke 14:27 AMP

Now I might receive some backlash from you dear reader, but first consider everything I am about to say. (I do not intend to cause you any offense). But many of you might indeed feel a little scared or perhaps angry after reading this, but again hear me out, I desire nothing more than for you to be saved and have full assurance of that.

Requirements of a Believer

So in Luke 14, we see that a large crowd was following Jesus, but what did our Lord do? He wanted them to know what would be required of them if they wanted to follow him, perhaps many followed for a miracle show (they probably wanted to see a miracle), perhaps many followed for physical healing, or perhaps many just went along because others were too. So in this chapter we see that Jesus turns and addresses the crowd and gives them conditions for following him. In our world we have many professing Christian who profess the name of Christ and yet have absolutely no relationship with him whatsoever (perhaps if even you are being sincere, you will admit you have no relationship with him), many follow because they believe he will give them good health, cars, money, and husband, etc. But Jesus turns and addresses them(and us) and lays out the real conditions. You know, a resounding theme in his conditions in my opinion is total commitment, and no I dont mean with lip service but I mean total undiluted commitment, we will look into each condition next. (But first, if you do not know what a believer is, I addressed that yesterday, so you might want to read that first).

First Condition

If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.

Luke 14:26 KJV

This is not a call to bitterness or enmity against one’s own relations, but instead comparing your relationship with Christ to your relationships it should appear as though you hate them. Let me illustrate this, “Assume that you are being asked by your mother to tell a lie in order to win a position or gain favor with your local authorities, common knowledge tells us that if we don’t want to make our mother displeased (both with us, or in general), we should obey8, btu instaed if we “hate” them we must object and cite our relationship with Christ as a greater priority than our physical relations. We should not be ashamed to share our faith with them in all our ways, because we love Christ above them all.

 So I ask—

Are you really a Christian?

Second Condition

And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.

Luke 14:27

In the introduction, I briefly implied that some follow Jesus for wrong reasons (cars, money, good health). As a matter of fact the prosperity gospel (health and wealth gospel) has been extremely pervasive and has taken over so many folks, and generated millions of false converts. These folks are promised heaven on earth if they are willing to pay for it and as a result give away their last cedis to buy it. Anyway, I am  going off on a tangent here, that’s not my message (it should be obvious I have tons of things to say about this and perhaps, I will address this in one of my articles, if the lord wills it), I will however say that the Lord doesn’t promise you material wealth on this earth if you believe in Christ and that what he promises is death ( read Hebrews 9: 27 or read my notes at the end), he also promises eternal life to all who repent and place their trust in the son Christ. Jesus says we must be willing to bear our cross and come after him. Now in carrying our cross, we must express a willingness to endure whatever may come our way for following him, even if following him will cost us scholarships, jobs, relationships, struggles distress or even death. We must follow, come rain or shine and we must be willing to stay true to our faith regardless of the severity of the opposition that comes our way as a result.

Now at this point if you are beginning to question your faith, know that even I did, just yesterday morning, but I didn’t pick up the computer and begin typing to terrify you, but instaed I did this to warn and even perhaps encourage you to begin taking your faith ,more seriously, however if belong to the horrendous prosperity movement (which I am guessing you are), you should indeed be a little disturbed and might I say even a little scared, because the image of Christ that exists in your mind is merely an idol, a shadow of our carnal desires and not at all the God of the bible, instaed it is merely one in your mind created by our worldly desires and “molded by endless teaching of ‘pastors’ and ‘ministers’ who are parading the bride of Christ (the church) in a garment she was not made to wear” (that quote was made by Paul Washer(a real pastor)). In short, this was not meant as an attack but merely as a heart check.

So again I ask—

Are you really a Christian?

The rationale Jesus Gives

28  For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? 29  Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, 30  Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. 31  Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? 32  Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace. 33  So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. 34  Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned? 35  It is neither fit for the land, nor yet for the dunghill; but men cast it out. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

This is Jesus Christ asking you to count the cost of following him., can you bear it?

You say, well how much will it cost me?   Everything! It will cost you your life. Now I must say this for a lot of us, our actual lives mat not be in danger (some indeed are!), but it will certainly cost you, it might cost you relations, money, your assumed dignity, job opportunities, but it will certainly cost you dearly. So my dear one, Jesus says to you and I, we must first count the cost, he sites two examples, in the first example, he says which of you who intends to build a tower, will not first count the cost, because if you don’t, then you might not finish and will be mocked (in this case, I would say, you faith failed), and in the second he sites an even bigger example which has to do with a king settling for peace since he knows he cannot win the war. All this is to us, we must count the cost of following him.

13  Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14  Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. {a bushel: the word in the original signifieth a measure containing about a pint less than a peck} 16  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Christian, wherever you go you are to shine and be the salt of the world, you must shine forth (not by material wealth) by being the light and salt. This means you don’t do the things of darkness. Instead you abstain from sins so ungodly I simply will not mention them here. This is so that men may see you and glorify the father (I will confess to you that I don’t do this so well myself, but I pray that the lord may have mercy and strengthen me).

In Conclusion  

If you make the decision( sincerely, not with one leg in and the other out), I believe he will fill us with his holy spirit and strengthen us, because our Lord is a sympathetic high priest who sits at the right hand of the father and is interceding for believers. So let’s be fully committed to him, because in only him and nowhere else is found salvation both from our sins and the righteous wrath of God to come. Lets commit to him because in him alone is found everlasting life!

If you are not saved, cry out to him in all truth and sincerity, repent, and trust in Christ alone and his work, and you be saved for he says, “all that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.”   John 6:37

And if you think you are, then once again I ask you –

Are you really a Christian?

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 14:6 KJV

Reference

Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow after me cannot be my disciple

Luke 14:27 AMP

25  And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them, 26  If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. 27  And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple. 28  For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? 29  Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, 30  Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. 31  Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? 32  Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace. 33  So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. 34  Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned? 35  It is neither fit for the land, nor yet for the dunghill; but men cast it out. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Luke 14:25—  KJV

“All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.”  

 John 6:37

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 14:6 KJV

 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment

Hebrews 9:27

Reach me on rdjirackor@gmail.com

[net2ubiz]

Subject: SUPERNATURAL BLESSINGS

References: Ephesians 1:3, Genesis 12:2, Genesis 13:2,

Hebrews 11:8, Deuteronomy 28,

1Theselonians 4:7, 48:17-18,

Introduction: Ephesians 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ “.

The Conventional Christians associate blessings with prosperity, money, and possessions. These are indisputable blessings, but they fall short when compared to Supernatural Blessings.

If all we needed as Christians was wealth, possessions, and money, they wouldn’t have been any need for redemption offered us through the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

We know Father Abraham, King David, King Solomon, and other Old Testament Bible Caracters Were Materially Wealthy.

If You do not have Salvation, and all the attributes of blessings that accompany it, You have not received “Supernatural Blessings.”

A. God Covenant Promise To Abramham:

God promised Abraham Blessings in Genesis 12:2 thus: “And I will make of thee a Great Nation and I will Bless thee, and make Thy Name Great And Thou Shalt Be A Blessing:”

God fulfilled His Promise To Abraham in Genesis 13:2; “And Abram was very rich in Cattle, in Silver, and in Gold.”

It is unfortunate that several believers cannot see beyond the material dimension of the blessings of Abraham: The truth is, there is more to this promise of blessing than the cattle, silver and gold.

B. Abraham Possessed 4 Character Traits that caused God To Grant Him Favor

1. Faith-Yielding

2. Obedience-Adherence

3. Holiness

4. Righteouness

In The New Testament, in Hebrew 11:8, says; “By Faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.”  

So, this yielding and adherence to God’s instructions, or willingness to obey God, was counted and regarded as a more superior blessing of Abraham than his material wealth.  

The lesson here is that the real Blessing which will be remembered in Eternity is not our Wealth but Spiritual Virtures like Holiness & Righteousness.

Supernatural Blessings are not measured with material things like money, cars, and houses. Supernatural Blessings are Blessings from God which have Eternal Rewards.

Please note that it is possible to receive Natural Blessings in a Supernatural way, but we must not reduce Supernatural Blessings to Natural or Material Blessings.

In Deuteronomy 28, God made the people of Israel know the various Blessings that will come upon them when they serve Him, in verse 9, the Bible clarified further the nature of the Blessing“.

The LORD shall establish thee an Holy Peopleunto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee.”

Why did God consider the Establishment of the People as a Holy People Neccessary?

Why Was This Counted As A Part of the Blessing? This happened because God knew that every other Blessing would draws validity from this one. The Most Supreme Of All The Blessings was a Blessing With Raw Eternal Value.

In 1Theselonians 4:7, the Bible mentioned that; “God hath not Called us unto Uncleaness, but unto Holiness.”

Our Truest Blessings are not Material Blessings, but Supernatural Blessings which can come in the form of:

1. Holiness

2. Righteous.

3. Sanctification

When God talks about “teaching us to profit,” in Isaiah 48:17, He is drawing our attention to a need to yield to His instructions.

The Profit He actually means is a Spiritual Profit which verse 18 puts in clear terms:

“O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea.” (Isaiah 48:18).

The God’s kind of Blessings are Richer and Deeper than Silver and Gold. Money may be a part of it, but never all of it.

In conclusion, Our Assumption that carnal blessings are Supernatural Blessings is a wrong one.

If God has a Blessing for you, dig further to understand if it is a Natural or Supernatural Blessing.

We must stop promoting Natural and Material Blessings in the Class of Supernatural Blessings, and we also must stop Undervaluing Supernatural Blessings, by reducing them to Natural Blessings.

Let the Majesty of the Father 
be the Light by which you walk,
Let God’s arms unfold and protect you. Let God’s Word inform and inspire you. Let God’s love infuse and transform you. Let God’s Spirit flow and Empower you now and always, Amen.

WORD

Servant DCarlos Phipps

[tarotlogy]

FOUR OF PENTACLES

MONEY MATTERS/GREED

Keywords

Financial Stability/Security, Savings, Investments, Business, Wealth, Materialistic, Miser, Penny Pinching, Selfish, Self-Interest, Stingy, Greed, Obsessions, Possessions, acquisitions, Hanging Onto, Hoarding, Ownership, Control, Rigidity, Closed, Blocking, Obstructing, Constipation, Isolation, Boundaries, Fear of Scarcity, Keeping to Yourself, Success in Exams

CARD IMAGERY DESCRIPTION

A man sits on a stone seat with a town in the background. A Pentacle rests upon his head.  He holds another like a shield at his chest. Below his feet rest two more Pentacles. His face looks tense and strained. The Pentacles are large and quite solid-looking.  He keeps a tight hold of them, so we must assume they are very valuable and of great importance to him.  To him they might even be the most important thing in the world.   As Pentacles represent the material world it becomes rapidly obvious that this man is obsessed with money or his possessions.  Just look at him.  The Pentacles are is in his hands, on his heart, under his feet and on his mind. He clutches one of the Pentacles to his chest and holds on tight, afraid that someone may try to take it from him. However, we see that he is alone so what does he think is going to happen?  We wonder if he ever takes a break from guarding his things or God forbid, share them with someone else.  Is he is the sole beneficiary of these Pentacles?  Are they all for him? He looks like he has room for little else if these Pentacles take up so much of his time.  Where did he get them from?  How did he come to acquire so many and why are they so large?

If we cast our minds back to the Three of Pentacles it becomes clear who this man is.  Is he not the Apprentice we met who was diligently working on the construction of the spiritual building?  He certainly has done well for himself.  The apprentice has gained skills and reputation. All the effort put in in the Three has paid off and the money or success has begun to manifest.  He wears a golden crown which symbolises that the Apprentice is now a man of no mean status.  His crown means only one thing and that is he is the ruler or owner of a substantial empire, business or his world.  He is building success upon success and is known to have the ‘midas touch’. Anything he touches turns to gold.

Ambitious from the very start in the Ace, he has always wanted more.  At this early stage of the journey he seems to be achieving it. As the Apprentice, he knew he had to put in his time working for someone else while learning his trade.  However, he learned more than his trade.  A shrewd business man in the making, he could see how much his employers were making and believed that he could do the same if not better.  He saw the possibilities, the potential and when eventually he was ready to fly on his own two wings, he especially saw the prosperous looking town in the background with its thriving business and trade.  He knew exactly where he was going and what he had to do.

He had saved hard over the years, putting away as much as he could while denying himself treats and even basic comforts at times.  He knew he needed a certain amount of money to get started and then it would make more money for him.  He has made much, much more by the looks of it but I believe he looks on his success as only the start of it for he is  now obsessed with acquiring more material wealth.  He sits on his own, atop a cold grey stone seat and at a distance from all the hustle and bustle of the town.  He certainly needs the townspeople when it comes to supporting his business but probably for very little else.  This man may deliberately isolate himself. He may prefer money and his things to people or company.

Note the colour of his clothes. He wears a dark brown habit with a thin blue band on the hem. The predominance of brown suggests his connection to the Element of Earth and the material world. However, over this he wears a black cloak. The black introduces negativity into the picture. Black represents the absence of colour and this man may lose sight of the simple things in life in his quest for material gain. He will have to learn that money cannot buy everything, especially happiness, and that in time he may become a slave to all that he possesses. For all that he has materially gained he cannot even muster up a smile to show his delight or enjoyment. He could even become extremely lonely. The Four of Pentacles is often referred to as the “Miser Card” and we can almost hear him grumble “they are all mine, all mine”.  We also see a bit of Gollum from Lord of The Rings in the Figure on this card.  Gollum was obsessed with a ring and spent his whole time trying to acquire it or hold onto it.  He spoke to it like a baby calling it “my precious”.  The Figure in this card may find that his need for having and possessing make him appear greedy and lacking in compassion.

Financial security is very important to this man and part of his holding onto his Pentacles has to do with his very Pentacle-like nature.  As we know, the Pentacles tend to prefer the Long-term plan and usually establish goals from early on in life.  They are very ambitious and driven.  This man is not just thinking about the here and now or how much he will make next year or the year after.  He is also thinking of his own future and how much he will need for it as the years go by.  It is no use if he makes money now when he is young, fit and healthy only to lose it to old age or ill-health.  Certainly not, for he is taking steps to make provisions for his retirement and will want to ensure he is more than adequately looked after.  Therefore, he realises the importance of investing in his future and will be holding onto or setting aside a fair chunk of his Pentacles for this purpose.  It is for certain that he will have several saving plans and insurance schemes set up on his behalf.  He will have done his research well, and only invested in those companies that gave a guaranteed return.  This Pentacle Figure does not like to take risks with his money.

The Pentacles clutched by the figure in this card do not necessarily have to be monetary. Anything that is considered valuable, be it his time, affection, friendship or privacy may be withheld or guarded closely. He is reluctant to let people get close to him or get to know him for they might look for something from him.  He prefers to keep to himself and may be quite unapproachable in manner.

We wonder if this man will ever be content with what he has and if he will ever feel he has acquired enough.  We must ask ourselves if he has cause to be so obsessive with having and getting? What was his background or upbringing like?  If he experienced hunger or poverty in the past he may now have a fear of scarcity.  This is bound to make him worry about money all the time, even if he has lots of it.  He may find it hard to relax and enjoy his wealth.  Instead he might be afraid to spend any of it as he will worry about it running out, or not having enough when he needs it. He may be paranoid about others trying to take it from him too and sees scammers and thieves in everyone.   He may hoard money or stockpile supplies. He needs to let go a little and enjoy the rewards of all his hard work.  He needs to splash his cash around a bit and buy himself a few little luxuries.  He has plenty to go around and is financially secure so he need not worry.  All work and no play made Jack a very dull boy.

This man in the Four of Pentacles appears to be in charge and quite rigid in his stance.  The Pentacle held over his heart and the crown he wears symbolise his personal power which he guards closely.  It also looks like he may have chosen it as his family crest, which he is proud to display for this is his land and his realm.  Both proud and stubborn in personality he becomes the brick wall when people attempt to move him or ask him to change his mind or position on a particular issue.  He has set beliefs and opinions which he will rarely budge on and cannot be easily emotionally swayed.  He does things his way, and, that is that. He will dig his heels in should anyone try to change him. He will hold on and hold out until the very last.

A hoarder and collector, this man finds it difficult to let things go, even himself.  He views everything as possessions; those he already owns and those that he desires to own.  When he does find himself a partner no doubt he will view her as a possession too and possibly exert control over her every move.  He may not be too generous with either his gifts or time as he is known to be stingy in relationships. One thing is certain though, and that is, he will know more about her than she will ever know about him.  He also has a nose for fortune hunters too who might only be after him for his money so no need to waste your time in applying for that position if that is what you had in mind.

Traditionally this card also referred to blocked drains and constipation!!! I wonder why?

With few friends and very little in his life except money and possessions I do hope that the sun continues to shine for him and that he continues to be successful.  I don’t think he would deal well with failure or loss.  We shall see.

All in all, The Four of Pentacles is a very positive and welcome card in financial readings for it speaks of financial stability, security and success.  Students heave a sigh of relief, for this card, when upright, brings success in exams.  Commitment to ongoing study ensures that all knowledge learned is retained.

MEANING

When the Four of Pentacles appears in a reading concerning finances you can relax.  Money has always been a big issue with you and no one can accuse you of being wasteful but the pressure is off.  Where money is concerned you are secure and not just for today or for tomorrow but the long-term financial situation looks stable too. You have plenty to go around so stop worrying and enjoy yourself a bit more.  They say that money is no good unless you can spend it, and a certain amount of this is true.  Having money does not mean that you must spend it all, but certainly it should be giving you some comfort in life, and not kept under tight guard all the time.

Fear of scarcity is often related to The Four of Pentacles so you may worry unnecessarily about money if you have come from a background of poverty.  This leads you to hoard or penny-pinch, even when you have enough money.  Your fridge may be overly-stocked on the basis that you will never go hungry again, or empty because you fear wasting money on items you may not get to eat.  Financial security should bring relief, but deep down the old hunger and want knaws away at you.  Nothing is thrown out that can be mended and your house may be full of broken down and worn out items, decor and furniture unchanged for years, just because they are still functional.   You may get no joy out of money and find both having, or not having it, embarrassing or shameful.

When this card appears, you must also ask yourself what is it that you won’t let go of?  What are you holding onto or holding out for? What do you think is so rightly yours? What are you afraid of, if you do let go?  What does letting go of it mean to you?  Is what you are holding onto making you happy? Is it worth all your energy?  Is what you are holding onto tied up in  just routines, habits and familiarity or is it something of real value to you?  Are you being asked to let go of it by someone else or is the call from within? Do you fear the changes it will bring to your life or are you prepared to take a risk?

The Four of Pentacles is a positive and welcome card for savings, investments or retirement plans. It indicates that you are accumulating goods, wealth and possibly even power.  Your financial situation has been steadfastly growing over a period of time but this is not by chance or even pure luck.  On the contrary, you have been working extremely hard and have several long-term ambitious goals that you are determined to reach.  What is it that you have been saving hard for? Where the Four of Pentacles is concerned it more than likely a large purchase.  You could be saving for College, to buy a house, a car, a business, travel or even a horse.  The Four of Pentacles tells assure you that you have the money for it and a little more besides.

The Four of Pentacles is a card for having enough belief in yourself to go it alone.  You may now wish to be your own boss, and very importantly, set your own boundaries.  Setting boundaries is very strongly linked to The Four of Pentacles.   You may be building walls around your self to control who has access to you or not, in an attempt to safeguard your privacy or assets. You know exactly what you are doing and how to go about it.  When this card appears, it very definitely acknowledges that you are in power and nothing gives power more so, than strong financial stability. You must be careful not to let this sense of power go to your head and become full of your own importance.  You may cut yourself off from those who have helped you along the way.   You may need to call on their help some day.

The Four of Pentacles suggests that you may now be in a position to accumulate assets or possessions.  You might be setting up a business or even several.  Judging by the capabilities of the Apprentice in the Three, you may be buying up property left, right and centre with a view to developing them to sell on for a profit.  Whatever it is you are doing, your reputation is steadily building and you are in high demand.  You don’t come cheap but you have excellent standards and the quality of your work is highly valued by those who seek you out. The Four of Pentacles suggests you have the Midas Touch at the moment. This is a card for success and success building upon success.

The presence of the Four of Pentacles may indicate that you are trying to hold onto something or declare ownership.  You may be involved in a legal case (look for Swords cards) where there is a dispute over land, business or property that you see to be rightfully yours.  You will be guarded and constantly on the lookout for those who are trying to take it away.    When this card appears upright it would suggest that you will be able to hold onto it.  A lot of tension will go with this situation.

Along with Financial security, the Four of Pentacles is linked to rigidity and control.   The Emperor of the Major Arcana (another (IV) card has taken over.  You may have a habit of keeping everything and everyone in order around you.  You or someone you know may be setting boundaries and restrictions or  demanding obedience and compliance from all. You may have become out-dated in your ideas and behaviour but dig your heels in regardless, becoming very obstinate and opposed to change. On the other hand, you may feel terribly blocked from making progress in life. Do you feel that someone is standing in your way or that they won’t back down on an issue or refuse to compromise?  You may be stubbornly holding onto a situation or position that no longer serves your best interests.  Maybe it is time to let go.  It may all come down to just being a habit, but fear of change keeps you clinging on relentlessly.

Another strong feature of this card is obsessiveness and meanness.  It can be a sign that you have been neglecting friends or family by being mean with your time, resources or money.  Your busy life might be getting in the way rather than any nasty intentions, so no need to feel guilty if this is the case.  However,  you may have a need to “have and get” all the time and the need to claim ownership.  You may look upon your friends or family as possessions also, and expect them to be at your beck and call.  It can be a sign of being self-centred when all you can think about is yourself and your needs.  You could have vast wardrobes of clothes, with many still unworn yet you still crave more.  You may find it hard to share with others or to give without expecting to receive.  You think  you need all that you have, but you don’t.  You have more than you can cope with but you are afraid to let go, or refuse to.  Such meanness of spirit will block your heart and turn you cold.

You can also have a habit of keeping yourself to yourself when The Four of Pentacles appears.  Privacy may be extremely important to you or it could be, that you feel people will be looking for something from you if you let them get too friendly.  You may be trying to protect yourself from the demands of family and friends. You may fear being under obligation to anyone or anything.  There could be someone you know who could do with some financial help, yet you fail to make even a token gesture.  You would never ask anyone for help and especially money, so don’t see why they should come bothering you.

In a relationship reading The Four of Pentacles often suggests that one partner is withholding their affection from another or keeping a secret.  There may be a selfish parnter who only gives if they are sure they are going to get something back in return.  It can suggest a partner who is more concerned with material things than the relationship.  They could be spending too much time at work even when it is unnecessary.

The Four of Pentacles is a warning flag for jealousy and possessiveness in a relationship.  A claustrophobic and controlling relationship could be indicated as one partner is closely guarded and watched by the other.  He or she may be looked on as the possession of their partner who dictates to them what to wear, where they go and who they see.  Look for cards like the Five of Swords, Eight of Swords, Reversed Court Card (especially Swords) or the Reversed Emperor.  Remember that this is a Stage Card and the couple in question may give the outward appearance of being happy and loving but it may be very different behind closed doors.

With the Four of Pentacles we get the possibility of a partner who controls the finances or holds back on money in the relationship.  There can be hidden bank accounts.  General Stinginess within a relationship is common when this card appears.

The Four of Pentacles can also suggest loneliness in a relationship.  You may appear to have everything but inside feel empty and alone in the relationship.  You may be trying to keep up with wealthy friends and neighbours, especially if one partner is financially and career ambitious.  This may not be your background or the people you would choose to live next to.  You could feel out of your depth or have nothing in common with them.

On the other hand, the Four of Pentacles can represent a couple who are saving hard for their future.  Everything they have is going into their savings account, leaving little for anything else.  They may be saving to get to get married, buy a house or even set up a business.  This is a successful, ambitious couple who will have no problem putting the time in, saving hard and making all the sacrifices that go with it.  They will certainly reach their goal as planned and on time.

As a couple you may be very self-sufficient and do not need to rely on others around you to make you happy.  You may keep to yourselves and closely guard your privacy.  This may be the way you naturally live your life as a couple, but on the other hand, you may have good cause to.

Career related, The Four of Pentacles augurs well for business or employment prospects.  It suggests a A financially successful business which is growing steadily and is stable and secure.   A lot of hard work has gone into the establishing of this business and it shows.  The market has been researched well and the staff highly qualified and well-trained.  It can suggest the building of an empire. Success building upon success as the orders flow in.

If you have been offered a job by a particular company and this card appears it highlights  a financially sound establishment with great employee saving and insurance schemes.   It can suggest a job offering excellent salary but it can also suggest holding back on a pay rise depending on surrounding cards. This will be a very work-oriented company with little time for sitting around and chatting, so you will find that everyone keeps their head down and gets on with their job.  It will be a great place to work and you will get well paid but don’t expect to be cut any slack or get too casual with your colleagues.  The people who own this business live and breathe it and will expect their staff to do likewise.  Everything will be about the ‘Brand’.

On the other hand, you may find you are working for a sound company but that it is terribly outdated.  You may be fresh and driven with lots of wonderful ideas but you have a boss or board of directors who block any attempts you make to update and modernise. You could very well end up well-paid but terribly frustrated and bored.  You could be working in a family business and feel that it is time for your parent or parents to hand over the reins of power to you, but they stubbornly hold on regardless.  They refuse to retire or take a less active role in the business. It is they who established it and consider it their baby and no one else’s.  They will hold on until the bitter end.

You may be saving to establish your own business. There is a great sense of ambition here and strong determination. Take care not to get too rigid with your business plans. Be open to outside ideas. You have to move with the times in business, therefore, new approaches may be necessary. You may be attempting to secure loans for your business venture and the upright Four of Pentacles would suggest that you are likely to be successful once you have done your homework, and have a well put together Business Plan, with realistic cash flow projections.

Health wise, constipation or bowel problems may be plaguing you.  On a spiritual level, your health problems, if no medical diagnosis is found, may be related to the holding onto of old emotional or psychological baggage.  You may hold the key to your own healing by releasing these repressions through meditation, counselling, energy healing or hypnosis.

All in all, The Emperor is content and happy that everything is as it should be and under control.

[niconiconwo]

Rex-V here, demanding more top-quality statepostings: What role does the (nuclear?/extended?/clan?) family play in LeftFashistan?

Haven't thought hard in a while so this is a bit roughshod, but the family is an integral part of a LeftFashistan society as it's the most optimal environment for the prosperity of people. It doesn't stand above the state however, nothing does, but people are people and aren't gonna feel too happy with a wire mother over a real one ie as much as in theory the State could replace the family structure in practice it doesn't work that way. Plus while this sounds funny from a guy who wants massive and wide State programs, the less the State needs to substitute in where people ought to be, the healthier the society and thus State we achieve. The State is only as strong as her people, and the people only as strong as their State.

A good healthy State should lead to a good healthy family and home, and a good healthy home empowers a good healthy State.

Moving on, as it concerns families themselves this is more personal than Stateposting, but extended families ought to be the norm over nuclear. Nuclear families predispose people to Individualist and anarchist delusions, extended and clan families are the true natural family and are a better blend towards integrating with the wider society and State. Your neighbors and townsfolk and countrymen are all part of a wider family within the State. Therefore we should agitate for renormalising structures that lead to a healthier ordering that allows us to regain our community-family.

Personally I would probably have some internal conflicts over family vs state given my own background and my predisposition to being heavily Statist, notwithstanding the State being a totality thereby means that Family and State don't or rather shouldn't be in direct conflict without falling to naked tribalism and anti-Statism. I ascribe such things to being born of the stresses of unnatural or anti-person circumstances; our current government and "social canon" is rather dysfunctional and so it inspires such things. A better State would extinguish such things without even trying as the motivations of such mindsets are vanquished. Destroy the perverted profit motive, alleviate unjust suffering and poverty, and the reactionary drive to self-preservation and self-enrichment at the expense of others will wither away. Our State is severely ill, which affects us in equally severe ways both materially and spiritually, and of course in our very own families. Human bonds are incredibly important and pertinent to the State as the State inevitably affects us all. Most importantly, it must be remembered that more Statism, not anti-Statism, is the real solution.

[merakiui]

Imagine yandere!Dottore forcing darling into a marriage?

Okay, but I raise you this: Dottore who forces you to marry him because you’re sick and he promises to cure you. All you have to do is promise to be his for all of eternity.

It’s difficult to pinpoint when and how this illness began, but if you dig through the folds of your brain you think it was shortly after you befriended the eccentric Il Dottore. Having connections to someone wealthy, no matter how nefarious he may be, is a blessing for you and your family, who are in desperate need of Mora. Your relationship evolves rather quickly and it isn’t long before you start to feel your strength and peace of mind ebb away. Months into a friendship that has soon turned intimate for mutual benefits, you collapse when he proposes and you’re certain you would have declined right away had your mind and body not been so muddled with a horrible fever.

That’s when the sickness becomes prevalent, no longer something you can chalk up to a lack of sleep or a poor diet. Dottore runs a few tests to find the source of this issue after he’s helped you to your feet and has brought you to lie down inside, and you could only remain still in his bed while awaiting a diagnosis. He hums to himself as he observes his notes and scribbles something down in a report, and you fear for the worst as you watch his expression, searching for any notable signs of distress. After what feels like hours of staring and waiting, he finally glances at you and explains the dilemma. In short, you’re sick. Very sick, actually, and your illness is quite rare. So rare that medicines are expensive and hard to come by. He may be a scientist who knows the human body like the back of his own hand, but he can’t guarantee he can create a reliable cure. There’s still the fact that it needs to be tested and deemed safe for consumption, he needs to gather resources and materials—there’s an entire grocery list of things he must see to so that you remain in stable condition.

But with his connections and wealth, he could easily procure the medication you’re in need of. You try to tell him that you’ll find a way out of this, but Dottore holds a finger up to halt your babbling. Smiling covertly as he lowers to one knee and retrieves an elegant ring from the depths of his lab coat, he slides it onto your finger. It’s a silent deal, one you realize with mounting dread. Marry him and he’ll cure all that ails you, including your illness.

Only there is no illness. There never was, as you come to learn many months later. With a wedding ceremony on the horizon and an obsessively devoted fiancé who’ll do anything to keep you by his side—even if it means deliberately poisoning you to keep you completely at his mercy—you realize you may be in for far more than you initially thought when you befriended him. Dottore hardly cares about your family’s financial well-being, but you do and you stress that they must be helped. If it’ll get you to stop whining so much, he supposes he can lend a generous sum. Money doesn’t solve everything, though.

You must remember that, as fragile as you grow and as close as the wedding draws, Dottore is the only one with the antidote. If you wish to live a long, prosperous life, you’d better rely on him. Otherwise he might force death upon you in his crooked studies of life and its inevitable pitfalls. Or, if you’re anything like him and wish to test the natural laws of mortality, there are other ways to live healthily and without worry. He’ll just need to look into when you were healthiest at certain segments of your life…

It’s your choice. No one likes being sick, after all.

[beauty-and-passion]

Time to talk about the flower shirt

You read the title. Time to talk about this.

This is the infamous flower shirt Thomas put on in his store and, since the fandom is the fandom, everyone started to speculate about those flowers.

At first, I didn’t want to do it. They’re just flowers and other people already talked about them, so what could I possibly add to the conversation?

But while I was writing about Orange, I had to talk a moment about the orange flower. It was supposed to be a small parenthesis, just a couple of words about that.

But then I looked at the other flowers and what other people told/not told about them and how some didn’t find Patton’s flower... so here I am, adding my two cents to this theme.

You needed it? Probably not. Well, I’m writing it anyway.

So let’s take a closer look at those flowers and see each one in detail:

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Roman: Red rose

Should I really explain why it’s perfect for Roman? Red roses are the universal symbol of love. Basically in all cultures red roses symbolize passion, true love, romance and desire. Also, according to this website, even the shade has a meaning! In fact, the deeper the red shade is, the stronger is the passion.

And even the number of red roses has a meaning! In this case, we have only one single red rose and that "represents love at first sight, or if it’s coming from a long-term partner, they are saying “you are still the one”.”

You know what that made me think? About Thomas telling Roman “You’re my hero”. A perfect symbol that he was “still the one” for Thomas.

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Orange: Lantana camara

This is an incredibly peculiar flower.

Lantana Camara symbolizes severity and rigour. And this alone can be analyzed in all possible ways, but there are other interesting details about this plant I think it's worth mentioning.

Lantana is toxic for livestock, such as cattle, sheep, horses, dogs and goats. According to Wikipedia, previous studies suggested it could be toxic for humans too, especially the green unripe berries. However "other studies have found evidence which suggests that its fruit poses no risk to humans".

Lantana is a freaking invasive plant. In some areas, it's so predominant, to reduce biodiversity, because its presence "can significantly slow down the regeneration of forests, by preventing the growth of new trees". Also, as if this isn't enough, this plant can also produce toxic chemicals which inhibit other plant species.

Lantana has also a great adaptability, that helped it to be so invasive: it can live in a wide range of different environmental conditions, it can survive long periods without water, heck it's even resistant to fire. It's not a plant you can underestimate. Like Orange, I assume.

But Lantana isn't just an invasive plant. Lantana has always been used for medical purposes, because it showed good antimicrobial, fungicidal and insecticidal properties and its extract helps against respiratory infections and ulcers.

Also, since it doesn't have many pests or diseases, lantana became a common ornamental plant. It even attracts butterflies!

In other words: isn't that the perfect plant to symbolize the double nature of a dark side? It can be a threat, change the environment, destroy and even kill. But it can also be a medicine, something useful, something beautiful.

Whoever Orange is, Lantana camara tells us that, whithout a doubt, he’s a dark side.

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Janus: Sunflower

Do you think Janus isn't perfect enough as he is? Do you think there's not enough husband material in the snek?

Well, you’re wrong and the sunflower is here to prove it.

Sunflower symbolizes loyalty, adoration, longevity, vitality, worship. Now add this up to the sunflower’s behaviour and how it follows the sun... and you’ll get Janus. Janus literally acts like a sunflower: Thomas is his sun and everything Janus does is for him. His whole existence is centered around Thomas.

But we already knew that, because it's the same message that shone through his playlist. Everything about Janus tells us how much he adores Thomas, from his canonical behavior in the series, to his playlist, to this flower.

Oh, do you need another proof that this is flower is perfect for Janus? Some societies use sunflowers as religious symbols. Ah, some good ol' reference to religion: it’s like being in his playlist all over again.

And, of course, sunflowers are used for a variety of reasons, like cooking oils, skin care and so on. Even the flower says self care.

This man is perfect.

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Remus: Green chrysanthemum

Here's another interesting flower.

Chrysanthemum symbolizes death and it’s the typical flower used for funerals. And I thought this was its universal meaning. It was perfect for Remus just like that.

But then I found out that Europeans use chrysanthemums for funerals and to honor the dead. This flower actually has a whole lot of meanings, some completely different from this.

In China, for example, chrysanthemums are associated with wealth, prosperity and long life. Also they're symbols of new life and reincarnations, so they're the perfect gift for old people or newborns.

While in Japan chrysanthemums are symbols of power and royalty. And that's even more fitting for Remus, because he's a Duke, so he is royalty.

But chrysanthemum also symbolizes friendship - and not just "a friendship", but a meaningful one. It's a symbol of loyalty, devotion, romantic/platonic love and, in general, positive energy. It's a flower with an incredibly strong meaning, so it can't be given too lightly.

And this makes it even more perfect for Remus. It's a flower with a huge plurality of meanings, it's both associated with life and death, it's powerful and it's royalty.

Also, you can eat it. Isn't that the perfect Remus flower?

(On a side note: please notice how chrysanthemums and sunflowers are both associated with joy, loyalty and devotion. I would have never considered "joy" a common trait between Janus and Remus while loyalty and devotion... well, they both care about Thomas and his career and they both work for him despite not being accepted, so I can see why those are common traits.)

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Patton: Nemophila

Surprise surprise, this flower wasn't easy to find. I’ve never heard of it, so I had to search among endless lists of blue flowers, hoping to find one that would perfectly match the one on the shirt.

And that’s how I found nemophila.

First of all: nemophila is also known as "Baby Blue Eyes" and it's an extremely rare color to find in nature. It’s very famous in Japan, thanks to the Hitachi Seaside Park. Open this link: it’s a literal sea of blue and it’s absolutely gorgeous. Of course, it attracts people every year.

Nemophila represents prosperity, congratulations on success and victory. Not the first things you would associate with Patton, right?

Well, while I was searching more informations about this flower, I found out this website about the essence of Baby Blue Eyes and the passage I quoted down below has the exact same words you can find on that link:

With its pronounced affinity for water, the Baby Blue Eyes flower essences addresses qualities of tender sensitivity, innocence and trust associated one’s early childhood relationship to the father, or other significant masculine figures that are in some way disturbed.

Very often the father was absent, or there was a lack of support or genuine presence. The Baby Blue Eyes type attempts over time to cover this wound of vulnerability with a false “hardening,” such as emotional distancing, mistrust, cynicism or spiritual alienation. It is a flower that can be equally helpful for men or women, although it is especially needed for many men who struggle to become strong, by disowning their pain.

So nemophilia’s essence has qualities associated with childhood, to the father figure and attempts to “repress” and hide emotions.

That’s Patton. That’s him, period. The childhood-related emotions, that are linked to Patton’s longing for “a simpler time”. The mentions of a father figure - who migh be absent or showing lack of support (like, idk, suggesting you should die so your friends live?). And the attempt to “cover the vulnerability” doesn’t remind you anything? Like the Nostalgia episodes?

This flower is Patton.

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Logan: Blue petunia

I would like to say, from the bottom of my heart, a huge "FUCK YOU" to this flower, because I spent TWO DAYS searching all the blue flowers in the world and all possible variants, asking myself why this goddamn flower looked so familiar and why it was so hard to find. Blue isn't even a common color in nature, so why couldn't I find it?

I've learned more about blue flowers in these two days than in my entire life. I've searched among flowers I never saw before, like glandora diffusa, leschenaultia and omphalodes verna. I was so desperate to consider this flower a new species, with the petals of a bellflower and the corolla of a morning glory. I even found a goddamn chinese variant of the morning glory that was somehow similar but not that much and why, WHY this was so hard to find?!

And then, after two days and a lot more desperation, I remembered: my dear friend @reptilianwithscallions​ told me about a post they made, regarding this shirt and the flowers. Maybe they had some idea about Logan's flower?

Well, let's all thank my saviour and this post, because otherwise I would've kept searching until the end of my days.

Long story short, Logan's flower is a fucking blue petunia.

And it's a very peculiar choice, because petunias have multiple meanings, several of which can be contradictory.

In general, petunia symbolizes anger and resentment. It reminds someone that you're still angry or disappointed by their actions and you haven’t gotten over the things that caused these feelings.

Oh my, I didn't know we were back in Logan's playlist. It's basically what he kept expressing towards Thomas with his songs: that he was angry at Thomas for his decision, that he doesn't approve that Thomas hasn't "a real job" and so on. Petunia is a flower that screams passive-aggressive, so it's perfect for Logan.

But petunia's meaning deeply changes, depending on the color of the flower. And while petunia in general symbolizes anger, a blue petunia is a symbol of peacefulness, intimacy and deep trust, shared between two or more people. It's so wholesome, because the deep trust reminds me - again - of Logan's playlist and how it ended: no matter what, he and Thomas are always best friends.

Also, petunia flowers have even a secret meaning behind. Since they’re also gifted to new neighbors or to people who have just moved into a new home, they represent a perfect welcome and a way to express affection and kindness to others.

You’re lucky to be so wholesome, you tricky flower.

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Virgil: Perennial Geranium

Geranium is a confused flower.

Some of the other flowers have conflicted meanings, but not as much as this flower. These are the most common meanings I found:

Folly or Stupidity

Gentility and kind nature

Clever minds

Ingenuity

Melancholy

Perfect gift for a bride

You can gift it to someone with whom you have planned a meeting 

You can gift it to someone with whom you haven't planned a meeting, just to make them feel welcomed

True Friendship

See? It’s confused.

Aside from jokes, this variety of meanings is due to its great diffusion: since geraniums grow everywhere, every culture gave them a different meaning. And sometimes these meanings depend on the situation too.

Awww, isn't it perfect for Virgil? He can be good and bad at the same time. Anxiety can be bad for Thomas and detrimental for his life, but it can also be the alarm Thomas needs. It depends on the situation.

And, just like geraniums in general symbolize positive emotions, happiness and friendship, so Virgil is in general a good guy. All he does is for Thomas' wellbeing, not against him.

And this is confirmed by the vast use of geranium's essential oil. It's one of the most popular and it has a ton of properties: anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-depressant, decongestant, relaxing and so on. Just like our Virge boy can be incredibly useful under the right circumstances. (Did someone say "Flirting with social Anxiety"?)

Also, geraniums are simple, humble flowers that usually grow outside, but then we take them and make them part of our homes. Once again, it’s Virgil: he's an outsider, he's humble, he talks bad about himself - but Thomas and the others took him and made him part of the famILY anyway.

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Thomas: Cherry blossom

I searched this flower everywhere and the only one that looks like the one on the shirt is the cherry blossom. Why did Thomas make a cherry blossom with eight petals, when they all have five? I have no idea. Is this a different flower, maybe? Maybe, but I’m done: I've looked at enough flowers and I don’t have any strength left.

As you probably already know, cherry blossoms are extremely important in Japan. They're beautiful, they're everywhere and they're meaningful.

Why? Because cherry blossoms are considered the perfect metaphor for human existence. When they blossom it's a pink ocean, a party, people go to admire them - but they’re short lived, because in two weeks, the blossoms start to fall. It's just like human life: a small, rich, glorious parenthesis in the void. Something little and precious that ends soon.

But cherry blossoms also symbolize rebirth, optimism, hopes and dreams. When they bloom, it means springtime is coming and spring has always been associated with renewal.

That’s a very good choice for character Thomas. He’s basically a cherry blossom, the whole series is: something that reminds us how beautiful life is, how multi-faceted, how important. Just like Thomas' single being encompasses seven different sides of himself, so life presents a wide range of choices, of aspects, of flavours. All beautiful, all worthy of appreciation, no matter how different they can be from you and your experience.

And this becomes even more important, in relation to the passage of time and the transience of life. Because life is short and, after that, there won't be any more time to appreciate anything.

In addition to that, I would like to point out how the theme of passage of time is something we already saw in the series. And not just one time, but several. Since the first season, we have episodes all around the concept of growing up, growing old, not being a child anymore, becoming an adult. And the last Aside keeps going in this direction. It's clear this is a big theme and its connection with the cherry blossoms proves it.

But why is the flower so different on the shirt? Because Thomas wanted to mess up with us? Probably. Almost certainly. Once again, thank you Mr. Sanders for making me question everything.

The floor is (figuratively) yours now: if you have any other information, thoughts or opinions, feel free to share them.

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[astrolology]

The Love-Hate Relationship with Stelliums (Pt. 1) ✨

Guysss pls remember that astrology is holistic and this should be read taking into account your overall chart placements, as well as the planets in your stellium and what sign rules your stellium. TAKE NOTE lol

1st house

❤️: You may be a person who is very driven towards a particular goal, single-minded in behavior and with a sense of determination that is hard to beat. The focus is on self-improvement and is rather internally driven - there can be large amounts of time focused on figuring one’s identity out. You’re not afraid to say things as they are - you’re able to dish out criticism hard but you give credit when its due. You extend the courtesy you receive to others. You may have an innate sense of wisdom that you keep deep within that you don’t let slip unless to extremely close ones but in times of hardship you are a good source of motivation. You always seek to improve yourself and it’s hard (if not impossible) to drag you down because of your strong personality and how you tend to always move on no matter what. I think 1st house stelliums are the embodiment of “don’t look back” and y’all always try to make the best out of every best situation, sort of like seeing the silver lining in everything. And also when crises emerge you’re able to keep a calm head on your shoulders and are good at making snap decisions, which makes you good on your feet!

👹: I don’t think y’all are as self-absorbed as ppl make you out to be but there’s definitely an element of self-centredness such that when you do something, you often consider what is most convenient or productive for you. You might get upset when your plans are disrupted but sometimes do the same to others even though you might be aware of what you’re doing - in that aspect, 1st house stelliums can be hypocritical. For you, there is never enough - you’re never satisfied with anything, be it yourself or for other things so you can seem really unappreciative. Keep in mind that you also tend to force others to agree with you and don’t be so quick to dismiss the other party’s POV no matter how dumb it seems. Remember that there’s always something to learn from other people, no matter their status. You need to work on expressing your appreciation to others in a more genuine manner (altho I know y’all do it in gruff, slightly awkward ways when sincere - kinda cute ngl).

2nd house

❤️: You may be a person who has a strong moral code and has a staunch value system that you won’t deviate from no matter what. Sense of loyalty is usually unbreakable and it can take a lot to truly anger you. You can have a good financial sense and good instincts/foresight that allow you to plan ahead for stability’s sake. More often than not in certain areas you are a master of categorising and structuring things which means that your mind is analytical, critical and (usually) organised. You hate it when people think they know you because you (understandably) know yourself the best - there are many privatised layers of yourself that you prefer to keep... private so yeah it just annoys you when that happens. Y’all are a leader in certain aspects of your life and even though 2nd house stelliums tend to prefer being the right-hand man, your control freak tendencies come out and you end up leading anyway. You become really productive because of the fear of failure - you have crazy high expectations for yourself and expect the same of your closed ones (although ultimately you’ll support them in whatever they do). There is an appreciation for the finer things in life and when it comes to your loved ones you’re not afraid to spoil them hard. 

👹: Be careful not to let this driving need for stability restrict you from spontaneity and following your heart’s desire. There is an inherent inflexibility in your nature; stubbornness can really be your kryptonite. You don’t really take any opportunities that you think might threaten your security which, while giving you a stable fort, can hold you back in your own happiness + prosperity. You might realise that there is a limit to your perspective but really struggle in seeing outside of that perspective mainly because you spend so much time thinking about what matters to you that you’ve become accustomed to your train of thought (altho when you do break it it’s lowkey groundbreaking). The focus on this house is on stability, not only on material wealth, so while you may be reaping in one aspect you might tend to lack on the spiritual or emotional elements of life. You can be very, very controlling and demanding so you might want to tone it down a little if not people might get the wrong impression. People might think of you as judgemental (and you are tbh) but I believe it’s just 2nd house stellium’s way of assessing a person’s character/abilities. 

3rd house

❤️: You may be a person who puts in a lot of effort into various forms of self-expression (not limited to verbal communication but also finding a specific niche such as music, art, writing etc.) Your brain is naturally sharp and inquisitive and you may be able to pick things up very quickly. You might be rather adaptable but are surprisingly stubborn when it comes to your opinion or intellectual capabilities. You might have a dark/dirty sense of humor and because of that you also have a keen ability to see past the societal nuances of propriety and get to the heart/root of whatever a person is saying. You can spend your entire life trying to understand people and why things work the way they work - your brain needs to be stimulated in order for you to feel alive. Passion for you has to be applied in a productive manner - you probably aren’t a person to just take a passion for something as a mere hobby. Rather, you would either apply that passion to one of your existing projects, create a new one or use it as a motivating factor. Your interests are wide and varied, which makes you really well-rounded in certain aspects! 

👹: Many people say y’all are flighty beings and I can certainly see why they would think so. Because of your perceptiveness, you tend to change your narrative whenever you’re speaking to different people, so as to make yourself sound more convincing. In that aspect, you can be quite manipulative. Your ego probably isn’t the smallest either haha - you can tolerate being slighted at some things but if it’s a challenge to one of your passion projects you’ll probably become very upset. You need to stop giving people the hot and cold shoulder all the time and even though you’re quite sociable you tend to flaunt but hide your true thoughts. You have to be more open and honest in your self-expression, and not that idealised, constructed version of yourself you think people will find interesting. I’ve noticed that 3rd house stellium ppl have an obsessive need to “stand out” and make themselves feel unique which, despite all your charms and popularity, might be the reason why you find yourself sometimes so isolated. You’re a perfectionist (although you would deny it) and secretly quite controlling but unlike other stelliums you can manage it better I feel. 

4th house

❤️: There is a pressing insistence regarding relationships in your inner circle - be it your family, closest friends, or your future family. Extended focus on your cultural heritage can also be possible. Deep down, compassion is at your core and you are very protective of your friends in a silent but aggressive way. Having a stable family life is very important to you but I’ve noticed that more often than not, 4th house stelliums have turbulent family relationships. The beauty of 4th house stelliums is their ability to break through whatever toxic relationships they’ve been in and to create families of their own - be it unconventional or not. They are the epitome of “we choose our own families”. Y’all can be very empathetic and rather selfless to the point where you allow yourself to be manipulated (even though you’re aware of it) - but it’s usually for a justifiable reason. You find it easier than most to balance the emotional landscape but there are moments where you need an outlet to express yourself. There can be an obsession/possessiveness over your own culture - you take pride in your roots and become lowkey insulted when people disrespect it (and if you don’t, you somehow nearly always manage to find some other culture to assimilate yourself in). 

👹: Y’all probably get very upset when things don’t go your way but the problem with this stellium is that there is a want to speak out but you choose to bury everything inside instead - giving you a very passive-aggressive and even aloof image. Internally, you guys might think that you are giving off a very soft/giving aura but some people are wary precisely because you are hard to read. You are very, intensely private (rivalling 2nd/7th house tbh) and you have to learn how to share your true thoughts, no bullshit, no suger-coated thoughts with your family and dearest friends even though you are capable of handling yourself. You are independent, ambitious, and people often underestimate you, but you have to let people in first in order for them to know what you’re capable of! Also, idealisation of certain things (eg. a future family life/partner) can be prevalent and you overthink things to the point where sometimes you make yourself miserable. Again, please talk to someone hahaha you don’t have to deal with everything yourself. 

5th house

❤️:  Insecurity runs rampant in any 5th house stellium BUT y’all are quite paradoxical in a sense that you also have a very strong aura of confidence. Sometimes, in crucial moments, you manage to convince yourself and others that you are the most important person in the room haha - literally the epitome of “fake it till you make it”. Still, a deeply rooted kindness is found in 5th house stelliums such that you’re always looking out for the underdog in the room. If you are developed you probably have a strong sense of righteousness which prompts you to look out for people who might be struggling. Y’all are very concerned about your physical appearance and most of the time you like to keep your body in good shape, which draws the attention of people in the room. You likely have an infectious smile (this is just a hunch but I don’t believe 5th house stelliums smile a lot - y’all quirk your lips or smirk but a true smile is rare so when you do... it melts the hearts of people). Everything that you do will have a youthful flavor and you have a healthy appreciation for downtime/self-care so while you might not (contrary to popular belief) be that fond of kids, kids are attracted to you. Oh and actually I think the stronger this stellium is in a person, the shyer the person seems at first impression but inwardly and as time goes by, they become more humorous and dramatic. 

👹: You aren’t exactly manipulative, but you know how to use the power of suggestion (and your charms) to get what you want. If unchecked, it’ll become a habit because to you, it’s an instinctive thing to do and you might not realise you’re hurting other people because of it. You are stubborn and prideful (which isn’t a bad thing sometimes but) you take criticism quite badly such that if a person tries to offer their opinion or goes against your beliefs, you might take it as a personal attack. You have a fear of being restrained/constricted (like 9th house) so you’re actually quite aggressive to those who you perceive to be a threat to your authority. You can also experience extreme mood swings (from crazy happy/hyper to melancholic in a snap) and when you do you expect people to give you attention. But you are hypocritical in this aspect because you yourself can be quite insensitive to other people’s feelings, or you brush them off if you’re not “in the mood”. 

6th house

❤️: You are most probably quite an organised person, not in a tidy way (although you could be) but in matters of life there’s an insistence on order and structure. The way you think can be very logical - you are able to think concisely and connect the dots in a quick manner and logic is probably prevalent in everything you do. However, in contrast to this pragmatic behavior, you are deeply caring and you won’t think twice to give up something if a loved one needs it. You are very disciplined in certain aspects of life and you are able to maintain a consistent effort in everything that you do. You’re probably someone who finds joy in small things and although you have high standards, it doesn’t take much to make you happy, as long as it’s genuine. You can be a perfectionist and really quite meticulous in your work which makes you someone who is detail-orientated. You give a lot of yourself to other people and most of the time you don’t expect anything in return, which is one of the great things about 6th house stelliums. You take effort into maintaining your physical health and you mighttt be a fitness freak or someone who keeps track of their diet really carefully. It’s likely that you encourage other people to follow your lifestyle and generally, you exert a sort of mellow influence around other people that makes them want to be better. 

👹: There’s a tendency for 6th house stelliums to fall into pessimism, precisely because of your pragmatic nature. Y’all may say that you’re being “realistic” but in actuality it does dampen the spirits of some people. You can also become really unreasonable and inflexible once you’ve made up your mind on something and that makes you a bit narrow minded because you simply refuse to listen to other people’s POV. This can also cause tunnel vision which can really limit your full potential and I think it’s something worth spending your time working on. When pushed into a corner or feeling insecure, y’all might try to cover it up by being condescending or giving the cold shoulder. There’s also a risk of being overly reliant on a schedule/structure and hence, cautiousness when it comes to being spontaneous or embracing something foreign. Because of your affinity towards maintaining health, your hypochondriac tendencies may be exacerbated and you need to try to lessen your over-worrying behaviour haha. Although you never dish out something you can’t receive (eg. high expectations - you’re truly your worst critic), your demanding tone can really make others cautious of you.

OVERALL, I strongly believe that the way to embrace your stelliums isn’t to reject or force yourself to change the values they represent, but rather taking those eccentricities and moulding it into something more precious and beneficial to yourself. It has to be done with a thorough understanding of yourself; with patience. 

-C

[eightyonekilograms]

Someone on the Discord brought up fertility

Just like last time I'm lazy and just going to dump it instead of editing.

[5:10 PM] Me: Oh boy, I have thoughts about this

[5:12 PM] Me: I haven't brought it up here but demographics has been one of my covid obsessions. I got a couple books about it (What to Expect When No One's Expecting, One Billion Americans, etc.), read all the articles, etc.

[5:15 PM] Me: I agree with you about a couple things: namely that if we had "infinite free energy" we'd be a a lot better off in many ways including demographically, but I disagree with most of your other points.

[5:18 PM] Me:

Also we need not assume decline in population growth is chronic.

This is a tricky statement because there's a social aspect and a mathematical aspect. Socially you're correct in the sense that whatever trends are driving the current decline could, in theory, reverse at any time. But mathematically, population decline is exactly symmetrical to population growth: it's exponential (technically it's logistic, but that's the same as exponential in the short term), because having fewer people means fewer people to make more people later on.

[5:20 PM] Me:

Infact there is some evidence to suggest that we actually did more science when we had 4-6 billion people.

I disagree with the implication here: we used to do more science because there was more low-hanging fruit, which is now plucked, and further discoveries require more resources (human and financial). Actually one of the big reasons I disagree with Ray Kurzweil and the other singularitarians is that when they show these impressive-looking exponential curves about scientific progress, they quietly hide under the rug that these increases are requiring ever-more investment (again, in both people and money) to accomplish. Just to pick a random example, every time chip manufacturers go to a new process (14nm -> 10nm -> 7nm -> 5nm -> 2nm etc.), the cost to build the fab basically doubles. I remember a couple years back Intel had to spend $5 billion to hit a new process shrink; now TSMC needs to spend $28 billion to hit their next target: https://www.wsj.com/articles/tsmc-to-spend-up-to-record-28-billion-in-advanced-chips-capacity-11610623587)

[5:23 PM] Me: I will try to find it but I came across a paper a little while ago laying out in detail that the cost of new scientific discoveries has been steadily increasing over time. It's not that there's anything necessarily going wrong with the scientific process, this is just what you'd expect as we pick low-hanging fruit: the later discoveries necessarily become harder. But if you extrapolate that trend out forever you eventually hit a point where every single person needs to be a scientist, and every dime of capital in existence, needs to be used to make any new discoveries.

[5:26 PM] Me: (In most fields we're a long way from that point, but it actually is here or nearly here in e.g. particle physics. What I have been hearing from leading-edge particle physicists is that we've got maybe one or two more generations of particle accelerators left before we reach a point where, to probe any further (e.g. to see if string theory is true), we'd need to build accelerators the size of the Solar System, which would take more raw material than the mass of the Earth. Barring some new theoretical breakthroughs, we might actually nearing the "end" of high-energy physics.)

[5:30 PM] Me: Fortunately most fields aren't at that point, but my point is that the more we discover, the more human capital is required to make further progress. That's a tricky enough proposition with a growing population, never mind a shrinking one.

[5:36 PM] Me:

I don't think it is safe to assume lowering population growth is a biological disorder so much as a conscious choice most people in the younger generations are making for a variety of obvious reasons.

I agree with this, but it's important to dig into that a little and understand the reasons. For example, I'm not yet convinced that there is a mass epidemic of people choosing childlessness because of anxiety about e.g. climate change. In internet comments sections you certainly see lots of people making that claim, but talk is cheap and randos on the internet can say whatever they want. In terms of the actual reasons, the data I've seen shows that number of children continues to track closely with a couple data points, mostly housing costs, expected lifetime income and uncertainly about future income flow.

[5:40 PM] Me: Third, I think you should give more weight to the concerns Rhys brought up than you currently are. The environmental stresses of more people is certainly a big issue, but I think it's one that can be dealt with without too much struggle with increased deployment of clean energy (one of the few optimistic data points lately is that there's a staggering amount of wind and solar power being deployed every year) and a couple of lifestyle changes like eating less meat. Not to say these are easy, but contrast with the pretty serious problems of population decline, particularly the social safety net.

[5:41 PM] Me: And I don't just mean the explicit ones like Social Security, but even market-based, privatized ones like retirement savings have a hidden reliance on a growing population.

[5:42 PM] Me: When you "save for retirement", you're not stockpiling food and water to live off when you no longer work, you're collecting financial assets that you expect to sell to someone else and live off that income. But if there's no one to sell to, that doesn't work.

[5:44 PM] Me: This is a problem that's starting to show up at the top end of the income stack: see this WSJ article about retirees who can't find anyone to buy their $3 million homes: https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-growing-problem-in-real-estate-too-many-too-big-houses-11553181782. It's easy to have schadenfreude here at those poor rich people who can't unload their huge mansion, but remember that this is inherently a problem which will start at the top of the income brackets and gradually make its way downward.

[5:46 PM] Me: You can push this problem back for a while by increasing taxes on the rich, and I do indeed think those should go up, but in a declining population that only buys you a little time. Remember that "money" is nothing but a claim on some fraction of total economic output. e.g. when you hold a dollar bill, you're essentially holding a note entitling you to one-zillionth of American GDP.

[5:47 PM] Me: At a certain point once population falls then total aggregate output necessarily falls too, and at that point taxing the rich hits rapidly diminishing returns: you're just claiming a bigger share of falling output

[5:49 PM] Me: One thing to keep in mind here is that most economies, but especially the U.S. economy, are primarily driven by consumer spending, i.e. normal people just buying and selling stuff to each other.

[5:50 PM] Me: This is why e.g. mass immigration isn't as huge a deal as a bunch of nativists like to think: immigrants get jobs, but they also spend money on goods and services just like anyone else: they generate labor demand as well as taking up supply

[5:51 PM] Me: But what I'm driving at here is that, again, a consumer-spending-driven economy with a falling population is going to get poorer pretty much by definition: fewer people buying stuff means fewer jobs to produce that stuff.

[5:54 PM] Me: Or to put another way, to use a ridiculously simplified model, GDP = Population X Productivity, and so if you take the derivative, then GDP' ~ Population' + Productivity'. So in a falling population environment, you need a lot of heavy lifting in terms of forever-increasing productivity in order for economic growth to be positive. And while there might be improvements down the pipe, frankly we kind of seem tapped out on productivity growth already

[5:55 PM] Me: Now, one possible response here is that we should work out how to have an economic system which delivers prosperity without endless growth, and I do agree we need that. But just saying that doesn't fix the problem that right now we don't have it and people will be poorer in a world without growth.

[5:56 PM] Me: And in such a world, I think it actually becomes harder to successfully transition to whatever post-scarcity economy can fix the problem, because people will be caught up in fighting over a shrinking pie.

[5:58 PM] Me: The neoliberal capitalist mindset of "a rising tide lifts all boats" isn't totally true and has been used to justify all kinds of nasty plutocratic behavior, but it isn't entirely false either. Without growth, at least in the system we have now, wealth distribution inherently becomes a zero-sum game. And that could get really ugly.

[5:59 PM] Me: So, that's most of what I have to say about why a falling population would be bad. But that's the easy part. Where this gets really complicated is why it's happening and what to do about it

[6:00 PM] Me: Now, I think one of the reasons I've been so fascinated by this is that it's been a pessimistic year, and falling birth rates are kind of the perfect pessimistic problem because I don't really see an easy way out. Also I'm just annoyed by partisans in general, and this is a perfect problem for that because it sort of frustrates partisans on all sides.

[6:02 PM] Me: e.g. the left mainly talks about the economic causes and proposes a variety of policy solutions, but an ugly little secret here is that government policy to increase birth rates has basically a perfect, unbroken track record of total failure

[6:03 PM] Me: All kinds of countries (mostly in Europe, but also in East Asia) have implemented all kinds of pro-natalist policies, and for the most part they have accomplished pretty much nothing. (Amusingly, this even goes back to antiquity: in the first couple centuries AD Roman Emperors were also concerned with falling birth rates, and implemented a variety of reforms that didn't do anything)

[6:03 PM] Me: You could always say they didn't go far enough, but at some point you're making an unfalsifiable hypothesis

[6:06 PM] Me: Meanwhile on the right, they're constantly talking about cultural factors, but this runs into two problems: it's again a set of mostly unfalsifiable hypotheses, but even worse since they're all tangled up in the Right's usual rants about The Way Things Ought to Be, but even if they turned out to be true, it seems like a hopeless cause because we basically have no levers to change culture.

[6:07 PM] Me: "Why does culture develop in the direction it does" is one of those huge questions I'm not sure we'll ever have a complete answer for, but I think it has to mostly involve technological determinism.

[6:08 PM] Me: https://www.sciphijournal.org/index.php/2017/11/12/why-the-culture-wins-an-appreciation-of-iain-m-banks/ <-- this is a great article explaining what I'm talking about, as well as explaining why you should read Iain Banks

[6:09 PM] Me: But my point here is that all the cultural changes the Right laments as causing people to have fewer children, assuming they're even correct which I am definitely not granting, are pretty much all products of industrialization. You can't roll them back without undoing the Industrial Revolution. At least not without an insane level of authoritarianism

[6:10 PM] Me: So on the policy side we have a bunch of levers which don't do anything, and on the culture side there are no levers at all.

[doomarchives]

David Annandale’s The Harrowing Of Doom: An In-Depth Review

So, I was kindly offered an advance reviewer’s copy of The Harrowing of Doom by David Annandale for the Marvel Untold series, a new prose line revolving around Marvel’s villains. Although I’m not personally familiar, the author’s prior written work and academic scholarship indicated a strong background in fantasy, science fiction, as well as horror film and literature - all essential elements of Doom himself honestly, whether in his character, design, or formative influences. A promising start from the outset! 

To no one’s surprise, I was especially excited for this one. Doctor Doom is both my favorite Marvel character and area of nerdy comics expertise, and Annandale sounded like the perfect candidate to tackle him. 

The Harrowing of Doom centers around a conflict familiar to those who know the character. Taking place fifteen years after his ascension to the throne, Victor von Doom is still hellbent on rescuing the soul of his mother, Cynthia, trapped in hell by the demon Mephisto. His yearly attempts to save her have been fruitless thus far, but he believes he can really do it this time, enlisting the help of a new character, Maria von Helm, and some of his lesser known subjects (also new characters) to accomplish the task, by building a machine called The Harrower. The noble scheme is further complicated by the reappearance of Prince Rudolfo Fortunov, son of the monarch deposed and murdered by Doom years prior, who is equally determined to take back what he believes is his birthright by any means necessary. The novel is a relatively dense and detailed one, and as a true blue Doom enthusiast, I have a dense and detailed review to match.

The first thing that I personally take note of in any material involving Doom is the author’s perspective on the truth of Latveria’s “benevolent dictatorship.” It immediately speaks volumes about a writer’s perception of Doom’s accountability and sense of morality; it kind of ends up coloring his entire characterization. That being said, I was really pleased by the evenhandedness with which Annandale treats Doom’s Latveria and his influence upon his subjects. It slots in neatly with some of the greats, Lee & Kirby, Jonathan Hickman, Roger Stern, etc with the acknowledgement that Doom is indeed a despot with an iron fist and a will absolute, but one who cares for the wellbeing of his country. Through dialogue from his subjects like the skittish Father Grigori Zargo and diehard loyal Captain Kariana Verlak, the reader gets the sense that Doom’s rule may be the best leadership Latveria has ever known. (A brief aside: another great strength of The Harrowing of Doom that has to be mentioned is the fleshing out of these different original characters. Maria von Helm was a particularly welcome addition, as a close friend of Doom’s mother and a far more empathetic magic user compared to him.)

Verlak is openly married to Dr. Elsa Orloff, a trans woman and neurosurgeon of international renown. Both of them had experienced the Fortunov rule that predated Doom’s, with Orloff even having fled Fortunov’s Latveria when she first come out as transgender, in fear of his tyrannical rule and the dangerously transphobic legislature he enforced called “The Laws of the Person.” It is apparent that Doom exists in obvious juxtaposition to the prior ruler’s bigotry. Beyond the total erasure of all previous discrimination and state-enforced bigotry, he has Verlak appointed in a role of great prominence, gave Orloff the tools she needed to succeed in her field, and even shares an exchange with her where he remarks that he knows her from her publications in the Lancet Neurology and that he appreciates them for their “speculative” approach. In an excellent exchange between Father Zargo and the rebel Prince Fortunov, the priest, who is by far Doom’s number one fan, explains Doom’s mesmerizing hold on the populace and the benefits they reap from his rule, despite it being a despotic one:

“I’ll be explicit, all the same,” said Zargo. “Doom is a sun king, even more fully than Louis XIV ever was. Latveria is a world power. How? Because of Doom and only because of Doom. Latveria’s strength and its wealth come from his inventions. And the beams of his sun touch every citizen. Universal basic income, free healthcare, free schooling, free universities, free training to the highest level of your calling - all of these things flow from Doom.”

“Free?” Fortunov snarled.

“The price is obedience, yes,” said Zargo, “And yes, Doom is feared.” Zargo stopped himself from saying Vladimir was feared and hated. [...] “Even though Doom is feared, he also is Latveria in every sense that matters.”

What I really appreciated was the author’s ability to walk the tightrope of acknowledging how beneficial Doom is for the country and his protectiveness over his domain, whilst also acknowledging Doom’s intense paternalism that ultimately favors his own goals. Doom, as well-read comic fans would know, is heralded as one of Marvel’s master manipulators. It’s a great strength of this novel to see him exerting his willpower and the strength of his personality to manipulate and sometimes, fully overpower that of his subjects. Father Zargo is definitely the most profound victim of this, a man with ties to both the church and the occult. Through the novel, Doom insistently pushes him towards the latter, his priorities made clear in one sentence: “The work was what mattered. Zargo’s soul was not Doom’s concern.” An especially interesting scene occurs later in the novel. Without too much elaboration, Doom performs an experiment where he uses the old Latverian nobility as guinea pigs.  This was something I immensely liked, corroborating one of my own personal perceptions of Doom. It’s always made sense to me that Doom would continue to hold a certain amount of disdain for Latverian high society, even after he went from low class Romani boy to monarch himself. 

(“The Fantastic Origin of Doctor Doom,” Fantastic Four Annual #2.)

Afterwards his partner, Maria von Helm, muses aloud that she always wondered why Doom let vestiges of the old regime remain, to which Doom responds: “Now you know. The aristocracy has its uses, and the advantages of being disposable.” It’s maybe my favorite example in the book of the exceptions to Doom’s purported benevolence. He does want the country to flourish and for his subjects to prosper, but this intent can be superseded by his innately ambitious nature and his own personal biases. It’s clear at several points in the book that Annandale is obviously well-read on Doom himself, but it was especially in the capturing of this nuance that it really stuck out to me in a big way. (As well as the fun reference to Doom’s brief jaunt in the French Riviera in Supervillain Team-Up!)

Outside of this core aspect of his characterization, I really enjoyed how the novel not only built up Doom’s cult of personality, but emphasized the sheer magnetism of Doom himself, in person. Constantly, characters find themselves buffeted by strength of his will, craving his approval or cowering and scrambling to avoid his displeasure. It’s a great true-to-character depiction of interactions between Doom and Latverian citizens, dynamics that were only touched upon briefly in the periphery of most comics involving Doom. I think, ironically, this is also perhaps the source of one of the novel’s few weaknesses. By keeping the book very Latveria-focused, Annandale does an excellent job of adding world-building on every level, from expounding on Latverian national holidays to the layouts of Doomstadt to the country’s storied history with witches predating Doom and his mother. But the fact that Doom mostly interacts with those beneath him or those who work for him gives the reader a bit of a myopic, overtly flattering perspective of him as almost too certain, too powerful, too unfeeling. I suppose it serves the scope of the novel for Doom to be more an obelisk of a man than fully well-rounded, but I contest that one of the best things about his character is that his indomitable exterior hides a deep well of pain and uncertainty. 

(“In The Clutches of Doctor Doom,” Fantastic Four #17.)

(“Oath of Fealty,” Doctor Doom #7.)

The novel obviously perceives Doom as Byronic, there’s even excerpts from Manfred interspersed between chapters that I greatly enjoyed, but I did find the heart of the Byronic character a little lacking here. Where Manfred bares his soul alone in monologue or to others, Doom, for the most part, does not. There are definitely brief allusions to the trials he’s faced, but he seems rarely prone to doubt or vulnerability until the very end. (For example, the central task is the attempt to rescue Cynthia von Doom’s soul, but little time is spent dwelling on this very human connection between mother and son.) Or even self-admitted imperfection! Interestingly, I only ever caught one mention of his scars in the entire novel. 

The Harrowing of Doom seems to prescribe to the line of thought that the mask is the only true face of Doom’s that matters, but I think with that philosophy, it stays firmly within the character’s own comfort zone. And his psyche never feels truly challenged, because there’s no worthy challenger. Doom knows without a doubt that he is Fortunov’s superior, so there’s no real interpersonal friction there. It left me keenly interested in seeing how the author would write Doom in the presence of someone like Reed Richards, an opponent who has historically brought out Doom’s baser instincts and invoked his self-doubt, drawing out his flaws and humanity in the process. Hopefully Marvel approves a sequel!

Doubtlessly, it’s still a strong entry into Marvel’s Doom canon and an excellent read for anyone who enjoys the character and is familiar with his history. The novel gives a sprawling, detailed look at Latveria and fleshes out both country and countrymen with aplomb. I took real delight at the indirect peeks at Doom’s personality through other characters’s observations or simple exposition. Some notable examples include Doom’s occult librarian wondering if he had been appointed out of spite of his witch-hunter ancestry, Zargo noting the west wing of Werner Academy was dedicated to clinical research in a nod to Werner von Doom’s work as a healer, and my favorite: the paintings within Castle Doom being impressionistic depictions of Doom’s ancestors, “people long buried, long forgotten, and in their lifetimes ignored or worse.”  

The conflict also moves at an engaging, brisk pace and smartly takes advantage of the widely known fact that Doom is preoccupied every Midsummer Night and turns that into an opening to be exploited by Fortunov, who also is well characterized throughout the novel and even experiences his own personal growth.

(“Though Some Call It Magic!”, Astonishing Tales #8)

Essentially, the product is a great novel about Doctor Doom influenced by strong comic lore knowledge, Gothic and Romance literature, horror cinema (According to the author, Doom’s lab is modeled after the lab from The Bride of Frankenstein!), and fantasy. If that sounds like something up your alley, definitely check it out. It gets a wholehearted recommendation from me. 

About Marvel Entertainment

Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.

For more information visit marvel.com. © 2020 MARVEL

[justhewayfaringstranger]

Aesthetic cover by: @otellosdeath

-Disclaimer- Despite the biblical inspiration (as I am a Christian witch), I have tried to make the ritual as inclusive as possible, so that it can be used by anyone.

☼ Milk & Honey ☼

Milk and honey recalls the biblica image of a perfect land so fertile its green hills flow with honey dripping from its hives, like liquid gold in the sunlight. A spacious land covered with pink hawthorn, red cyclamen, and white rockrose. There are the flowers of its myriad wild fruits, and the warm valley air smelling of their nectar.

This ritual is therefore meant for: Peace, prosperity, success, fertility, thanksgiving.

Associations: It is a ritual linked to spring and the sun.

Colors: white, yellow, gold.

When: There is no fairer time than another to do it. Made in the hottest hours of the day, when the sun is at its peak it could be a little more powerful, but do it whenever you want or need it.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons of honey (about 50g) - sweetness; representation of gold.

Half a cup of milk (about 125ml) - prosperity; success; protection; nourishment. If you don't like milk from an animal or are sensitive to dairy, you can use any other type of vegetable milk associated with your intentions (e.g. soy milk is great for job success).

Your favorite incense (if you do not have or cannot use incense, replace it with essential oil of your choice or olive oil).

A white candle on which you will engrave a symbol or seal that corresponds to your intentions.

A gold-colored candle (also yellow or white is fine) to clean the space, give more push and power.

How to cast:

After having dosed the two ingredients separately, mix them together in a container until a homogeneous mixture is obtained. If you prefer the mixture to remain denser, you can use yogurt.

When the mixture is ready, ignite the incense and pass the mixture into the smoke (if you don’t have or cannot use incense, pour three drops of essential oil of your choice or olive oil into the mixture).

Say: I make this offering to (the earth, your divinity, the universe, ancestors, etc.). As tank for the many blessing I have received and those I shall some day receive. I know mote it be.

Light the candles (if you are doing this spell for a particular reason (you want work or school success, because you need economic peace, you want to thank your divinity for something in particular etc.) you can write your intention on a sheet of paper and burn it in the candle flame. It isn’t necessary, but it can be useful to center your intentions).

Apply the compound obtained on the root and length of the hair accompanying the action with gentle massages. Continue to massage for a few minutes (the mask should be applied to dry hair before shampooing).

Leave on for about 15 minutes, covering your hair with a bathing cap or plastic bag.

While you wait, you can relax and meditate, write on your book of shadows, do other spells, sit in the sun, draw, or do your chores while listening to the music that you remember the spring / summer, the sun or your divinity etc. anything related to the sun, light or spring / summer is fine.

After the laying time, rinse the head thoroughly, taking care that all the product is removed, to avoid the appearance of unpleasant halos after drying. Then proceed to wash your hair with your usual shampoo.

When you are finished, blow out the candles and instead let the incense burn (let it consume itself).

WORNING!

If the scalp is irritated, avoid applying this hair mask by consulting a specialist doctor.

Check that you are not allergic to any of the ingredients (even if you use essential oils instead of incense).

If after applying the hair mask nourish a sense of irritation, rinse the head thoroughly and do the shampoo again.

OTHER USES: If you don't want to cast this spell / ritual as a hair mask, you can change the way you use it: you can then use it as a face / body mask or as a drink, keeping the rest of the ritual unchanged. Note: if you use it as a drink, don’t use essential oils or olive oil inside. As said before, if you don’t want or cannot use incense to purify the mixture, if you have to ingest it, use cinnamon or vanilla instead of incense.

If you use it for hair, know that:

Honey deeply moisturizes the hair, in fact it is the ideal ingredient for brittle and dry hair that needs nourishment from the roots to the ends, regaining softness and lightness even to the touch.

Honey strengthens the hair and thanks to its restorative properties it repairs the internal breakages of the hair. For this reason, the hair mask with honey and milk especially benefits hair that breaks, as it is weakened by the action of external agents such as the heat of the hair dryer and plates, the constant washing, the action of the sun.

In addition, honey restores the dull and dry hair to new shine and radiance, giving the face even more vigor.

Honey has a prolonged action over time so it is sufficient to apply this type of hair mask once a week.

If you use it as a face / body mask:

Both honey and milk possess antimicrobial and cleansing properties. These properties are enhanced when the two are taken together. Numerous cleansers are prepared using milk and honey, because the mixture gives the skin a healthy glow. One can also enjoy a milk and honey bath, by mixing them in equal quantities in the water. The combination is often used in popular spas throughout the world.

If you use it as a drink, know that:

Help the digestion

Honey has long been known as a source of prebiotics, which are nutrients that stimulate the growth and development of probiotics, which are beneficial bacteria that grow and develop in our intestines and digestive system.

Prebiotics have demonstrated a stimulatory effect on bifidobacteria, a type of probiotic that is found in milk. The carbohydrates and oligosaccharides in honey promote the healthy and proper function of these beneficial bacteria that are essential for the healthy maintenance and function of the GI tract. When the bacterial balance in the digestive tract is good, it eliminates a number of irritating conditions, including constipation, cramps, bloating, and it prevents the development of detrimental bacterial growth!

Help the resistance:

A glass of milk and honey every morning is known to improve a person’s stamina. While milk contains proteins, honey contains the necessary carbohydrates required for effective stimulus of the metabolism. Milk and honey provides a boost in strength to everyone, including children and the elderly. Animal proteins from milk are broken down by enzymes into their basic amino acids, and are then reformed to create usable proteins for humans. The excess material in this transformation is then oxidized as usable energy. Proteins are an essential part of the human diet, and honey helps to stimulate their metabolism!

Help  Bone Health:

As research on honey continues, it is gradually becoming clear that honey acts as a carrier and a transport of nutrients from food throughout the body. Specifically, honey has shown itself to be integral in the body’s uptake of calcium, of which milk is a rich source. Therefore, consuming honey and milk together will not only give your body the necessary nutrient (calcium) to benefit your bone health, but also the nutrient to maximize the absorption of it into your body. Proper calcium levels can prevent conditions like osteoporosis and inflammation of the joints as we age!

Help for Insomnia:

Honey and milk have both been traditionally used as remedies for insomnia and sleeplessness. Individually, they are both effective, but the effects are strengthened when taken together. Honey is one of the rare sugary foods that causes a controlled increase in the amount of insulin being secreted, which also promotes tryptophan to be released into the brain. Tryptophan is normally converted into serotonin, which induces a feeling of relaxation. Furthermore, serotonin is commonly converted to melatonin, a well-researched sleep aid. Through that rather confusing chemical pathway, honey and milk can be used to reduce sleeplessness!

Have Anti-Aging Properties:

The combination of milk and honey impacts not only the skin, but also the rest of the body, by making it agile and youthful. People in many ancient civilizations, including the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians and Indians, drank milk and honey to preserve their youth. Since milk and honey can help to ensure long life, the combination was known as “the elixir of life.”

The many antioxidant properties that occur when milk and honey are combined are the scientific explanation behind the anti-aging properties, because antioxidants attack the free radicals which so drastically affect the organ systems. They are also one of the primary causes behind skin degradation, wrinkles, blotches, and general failing health of your body’s largest organ, the skin!

It owns Antibacterial Properties:

Research has shown that milk and honey have a more pronounced effect on staphylococcus bacteria than milk or honey when taken alone. It is also believed that honey, added to warm milk, cures constipation, flatulence and intestine disorders. It is also good for treating respiratory disorders such as colds and coughs.

The benefits of honey and milk on the human body are so enormous that the phrase “land of milk and honey” meaning “a place which has plenty” is commonly used. Jerusalem is referred to as the land of milk and honey in the Old Testament, so they probably enjoyed a wealth of health benefits back then!

  For all those interested:

The phrase “a land flowing [or ‘that floweth’] with milk and honey” appears 20 times in our King James Bible—

Exodus 3:8, Exodus 3:17, Exodus 13:5, Exodus 33:3, Leviticus 20:24, Numbers 13:27, Numbers 14:8, Numbers 16:13, Numbers 16:14, Deuteronomy 6:3, Deuteronomy 11:9, Deuteronomy 26:9, Deuteronomy 26:15, Deuteronomy 27:3, Deuteronomy 31:20, Joshua 5:6, Jeremiah 11:5, Jeremiah 32:22, Ezekiel 20:6, and Ezekiel 20:15.

 Curiosity: X

Stay safe and follow your instincts!

Blessings !!

[a--god--in--ruins]

so there’s this theory (propogated by christians) that saturn is actually evil and is the god the jews secretly worship. but this is bullshit.

saturn is the good. he is the second sun. the true sun. the black sun. he was the ruler over the golden age of mankind. look at mithraism. look their grades of initiation. there are seven of them. the patron of the sixth grade is sol (the sun) himself. but there is still another grade above that. the seventh grade. and this grade’s patron is saturn. saturn is ranked above sol. and the name of this rank is the “Father”. he is frequently depicted alongside mithras, sometimes in a passive role as overseer/witness and sometimes in a more active role as he hands the dagger over to mithras with which he was slay the bull, thus subtly conducting him.

who is saturn really? saturn is cronus is chronos is aion. remember that. like i said, he was the ruler of the golden age in which humans were free and good and lived in paradise in which all was held in common and men lived in harmony with nature and in a state of perpetual celebration. but before that, he had castrated and overthrew his tyrant of a father, uranus, the king of the universe. he was the only one with the balls to do so. he was also a god of wealth and bounty and abundance and agriculture. also worth noting that when he was eventually overthrown by his son jupiter/zeus, he fled to italy and became the first king of latium/rome, and as such was the first realization of imperium on earth (i won’t get into the implications here. that’s for another time.). and again, under his rule humanity prospered. he brought law and order and civilization to mankind. he was also a god of death and destruction. one of his consorts was known as “lua mater” (mother destruction). saturn was honored with offerings of human sacrifice in the form of gladiatorial combat. saturn was a complex god. he was a god of contradictions. he was a god of creation and destruction. he was a god of life and death. he was a god of order and liberation and revolt. 

saturnalia was a holiday in which the status quo was subverted. it was a celebration of light and life and rebirth and an attempt to replicate the golden age under saturn’s rule, in which all men were treated as brothers and there was only feasting and drinking and freedom and revelry. also it’s proximity to the solstice and sol invictus’ birthday are hard to ignore. saturn was also closely associated with janus, to the point where they are often equated. and perhaps most importantly, he was also god of time. ever-hungry, all-consuming time (consuming even his own offspring), its creative and destructive faculties. of cycles, transitions, boundaries, seasons, order, flux, flow, etc. and in his aion form, unbounded, infinite time. also, marcus messala, an ancient roman, claimed that aion and janus were one and the same. saturn is also father of truth and father of aether. aether literally means “burning/shining” and the sun/fire is considered a material analogue to this spiritual fire. light/sun/fire is sacred to heraclitus (and aryans in general). he refers to the cosmos itself as “an ever-living fire” and he equates fire to zeus as the divine ordering principle of the universe by referring to it as “the thunderbolt that steers the course of all things.” i will touch more upon these things later.

anyway, what about mithras? mithras is undeniably a solar deity. he his referred to as sol invictus and he often equated with sol/helios. this is known. what’s less known is his connection to phanes (whose name means “shining”). not only are the two explicitly equated in text and inscription (in which mithras is also identified with zeus btw.) but they are often depicted with similar imagery (youthful appearance, emerging from a rock/egg, encircled by a zodiacal ring, etc. aion is also frequently depicted with a zodiacal ring). it’s also worth noting that phanes is equated with dionysus who is equated with pan. sometimes he (phanes) is depicted with hooves, relating him to pan explicitly. also worth mentioning is that jupiter/zeus and phanes (both equated to mithras) are both offspring of saturn/cronus/chronos/aion. and in the orphic hymns helios (mithras) is again equated with zeus.

so then there’s this third figure that is associated with mithraism. the monstrous lion-headed god. unequivocally a god of time. but more than that, this god is a synthesis of mithras and saturn. this monstrous deity is an all-encompassing god of light and time. he is always depicted with imagery relating to both saturn and mithras and even other gods. it becomes impossible to ignore all the recurring symbolism. the lions, snakes, bulls, crows, sickles, staffs, fire, globes, keys, zodiac, whips, wings, scepters, thunderbolts, etc. also the recurring themes of time, cycles, light, life, death, rebirth, cannibalism, sacrifice, chaos, order, liberation, fertility, power, change, flux, flow, unity, creation, destruction, etc. this god is a god of light and time. the father of all, the giver of life, the guarantor of the cosmic order, the ceaseless hunger, the all-consuming, the eternal flame, the creator and destroyer. eternal, divine, absolute. the all. basically the demiurge, but without the negative connotations of the christian gnostics. and don’t pretend like i’m talking nonsense equating and synthesizing all these gods. gods being distinct and yet the same is no foreign concept to aryans. just look at the trinity. the trinity is the same idea. one god but with multiple aspects. it’s an aryan imposition upon a jewish religion. but i won’t get into that right now. i can write a whole other post all about how christianity is a grotesque amalgamation of aryan and jewish ideas. my point is, you can’t act like the idea of gods being one and multiple simultaneously is ridiculous, especially if you’re a christian who believes in the trinity.

okay, and what about this talk about a “second” “truer” sun? well, throughout western mysticism there are esoteric but definite references to the idea of a second sun existing. a spiritual/noetic counterpart to the material sun. perhaps the most famous and obvious example is plato’s allegory of the cave where plato explicitly equates his form of the good with a sun existing in his world of forms, existing beyond our material universe, illuminating being itself much like the sun illuminates the material world around us. then we have the chaldean oracles, in which they designate another “solar world” beyond our own composed of “perpetual light”. they talk about a noetic sun existing in this world, which they refer to as “time of time”. they also equate god to dionysus and refer to him as the father (remember, saturn is the father of zeus/jupiter/phanes/etc and his grade in the mithraic mysteries is the father.). then philo, in his “de opificio mundi”, he makes reference to a sun “above the heavens” whose light is invisible to the naked eye and only perceptible by the mind and whose light he refers to as “divine reason” and “the image of God”. then in plotinus’ fourth ennead he makes reference to two suns; our mundane sun, and then another sun that exists in the divine realm which he equates to nous/intellect. then we have julian in his “hymn to helios” where he makes several references (directly and indirectly) to two types of sun, the invisible/intelligible and the visible/material. his hymn actually corroborates a lot of my thoughts above. in it he also suggests that the names used to refer to multiple gods actually refer to mithras-helios. anyway, i digress. point is there are several hints of the existence of two suns. one which is material and illuminates the mundane world, and one which is noetic and exists in a solar realm beyond our own and is the source of all. and the latter is always superior and conducts the former. this second, truer, noetic, purifying, divine sun is the black sun.

[spirit-science-blog]

Money is like love; it kills slowly and painfully, the one who withholds it, and enlivens the other who turns it on his fellow man. - Khalil Gibran

Do you struggle with money? Are you ready to transform your entire life? At last, it’s time to explore how you can create your spiritual money right now. Let’s waste no time and dive in!

You might already be familiar with this material, but for those who aren’t, allow me a moment to introduce you to two men and their legendary book. Napoleon Hill, Andrew Carnegie, and the book Think and Grow Rich.

This book is truly the ultimate spiritual success manual, having sold over 100 million copies, and helped to create more millionaires in the world than you can count! This book came about in 1937 when a man named Andrew Carnegie commissioned a young Napoleon Hill to write a book about how he became the wealthiest person of his generation, the world's first billionaire by today's standards. In essence, I mean technically he wasn’t a billionaire, but with the inflation of the dollar, today he would be several times over.

Just to get this out of the way - I feel it’s important to note that those who read it will probably notice a bit of sexual bias in the language used. The book was intended for men when it was published in 1937. That said - the principles that they explore are relative to anyone who is on the journey of wealth transformation. While I don’t support the sexist attitude, the core information is valuable to explore.

This book documents the ultimate success philosophy and formula for anyone who is seeking to generate wealth in the way of thinking that mirrors the understanding of the ancient Greek mystery schools. I’m not even joking - This book teaches how to create wealth in your life by being psychic! Allow me a moment to share a few key passages to show you what I’m referring to.

Indeed, “thoughts are things,” and powerful things at that, when they are mixed with definiteness of purpose, persistence, and a burning desire for their translation into riches, or other material objects.”

“More than 40 years ago, the author, working in conjunction with the late Dr. Alexander Graham Bell and Dr. Elmer R. Gates, observed that every human brain is both a broadcasting and receiving station for the vibration of thought. In a fashion similar to that employed by the radio broadcasting principle, every human brain is capable of picking up vibrations of thought which are being released by other brains.”

Now - returning to the main idea here - when you begin to think and grow rich, you will observe that riches begin with a state of mind, with definiteness of purpose. The author reminds us that our state of mind is of the utmost importance - success comes to those who become success conscious. Failure comes to those who indifferently allow themselves to become failure conscious.

He concludes the introductory chapter by informing us that if we can learn to follow the 13 principles of thinking and growing rich, literally anyone can lead a wealthy and prosperous life. Going over the principles takes up the majority of this book - but allow me a moment to run through them with you.

Principle 1 - Desire. We must have a healthy desire for what it is that we want. This is akin to being able to consciously focus on the thing that you want to create - for what we think and feel actively creates our reality. If we choose to just “get what life gives us,” then yes, we’re not going to end up with much. We have to be clear about what we want and be willing to go after it!

Principle 2 - Faith. Quoting directly from the book - “Faith is the head chemist of the mind. When faith is blended with thought, the subconscious mind instantly picks up the vibration, translates it into its spiritual equivalent, and transmits it to infinite intelligence, as in the case of prayer.”

Principle 3 - Autosuggestion - a term which essentially means self-suggestion, the agency of communication between the conscious and subconscious minds. This is your ability to program your subconscious mind by making sure to feed it creative and healthy thoughts, instead of destructive ones.

Principle 4 - Specialized knowledge. There are two kinds of experience, General and Specialized. General knowledge is the kind of stuff you learn in school - random bits of history and math and literature that, by itself, is not suitable for much. Specialized knowledge, on the other hand, is the knowledge that is organized and intelligently directed towards the fulfillment of your dreams.

Principle 5 is Imagination - what they describe to be the workshop wherein all impulses, dreams, and desires are given shape, form, and action. There are two forms to our imagination, the synthetic vision, which arranges old concepts, ideas, or plans into new combinations, which doesn’t create anything new - and the creative imagination, which is the mind-opening bridge to the infinite intelligence that allows you to conceive of entirely new concepts, the faculty through which hunches and inspirations are achieved.

Principle 6, 7, and 8 all go together - they are Organized Planning, Decision, and Persistence. This is the practical ability to form definite, concrete plans of action, making decisions on them, and executing them consistently and persistently until you begin to see results. Also - procrastination is the killer of dreams, so while you might be worried that “oh what if I don’t make the right decision” - any decision is better than sitting there and doing nothing. You continually refine and improve as you go.

Speaking to persistence, they explain that one of the most common causes of failure is the habit of quitting when one is overtaken by temporary defeat. Every person is guilty of this mistake at one time or another. Before success comes in one's life, they are sure to meet with much temporary defeat, and perhaps, some failure. When defeat overtakes a person, the most natural and most logical thing to do is quit, and that is what most do. However - failure is a trickster with a keen sense of irony and cunning. It takes great delight in tripping one when success is almost within reach.

Principle 9 is the Power of the Master Mind. The mastermind may be defined as “coordination of knowledge and effort, in a spirit of harmony, between two or more people, for the attainment of a definite purpose.” It means don’t try and do everything yourself if you can team up with people to achieve a vision, do it.

Principle 10 is the Mystery of Sex transmutation…. Yes - the mystery of sex transmutation. Very simply - this means the switching of the mind from thoughts of physical expression, into ideas of some other nature. I’ll just leave that one there. It’s an exciting chapter.

Principles 11, 12, and 13 are called “The Subconscious Mind, The Brain, and The Sixth Sense,” and it’s when this book becomes a mystery school of its own. They explain that our minds are receivers and emitters for thoughts and emotions into the collective field of consciousness, that we’re connected to everyone, that we must train and use our subconscious for connecting to infinite intelligence - aka Source, Spirit, or God - and through the opening to endless abundance, we begin to direct ourselves towards the creation of value in the world which produces wealth as a result. We also develop the faculties of our psychic mind, the sixth sense, through which infinite intelligence may and will communicate voluntarily, without any effort from you. This is the apex of the philosophy, but which can only be genuinely mastered once the other principles have been fully understood and integrated into your psyche.

The book concludes with a final chapter on the Six Ghosts of Fear, where they describe that the sixth sense will be blocked as long as you embody the following fears: The fear of poverty, criticism, ill health, loss of the love of someone, old age, and death. We must tackle these fears and overcome them within us through meditation and other conscious engagement with ourselves, and this will support us in activating our sixth sense.

Now, I know these 13 principles alone are a lot to digest; you might need to rewatch them and take notes! But that said, there’s one more thing from this book I must share with you! Think and Grow Rich also describes the 6 step action item formula to begin creating your spiritual wealth right now. Take note - if you want to transform your financial reality completely - I encourage you to pay close attention to the following.

Step 1. Determine what you want to achieve/accomplish. Decide what your goal is. The purpose must be specific enough that you know when you have completed it. It is also essential that you are emotionally engaged in achieving the goal. Your desire for the result must be strong enough to motivate you to do what you need to, even when you do not want to.

Step 2. Decide what you are willing / need to give in return for what you desire. Nothing worthwhile comes without some price (i.e., time, money, change a habit, etc.). What changes do you need to make to your life/lifestyle that will allow you to achieve your goal?

Step 3. Set a specific date when you want to achieve your goal. This gives you a set timeline to work with as you develop your plan.

Step 4. Develop your plan. Begin at once, whether you are ready or not. What steps are you planning to take that move you towards your goal? Do not wait for the plan to be perfect. Start right away. You can, and will, make adjustments as you go!

Step 5. Write a clear and concise statement of what you want, when you want it, what you are willing to give, and the actions you plan to take to achieve the goal.

Step 6. Read your statement aloud, with emotion, a minimum of two times a day - first thing in the morning, and right before you go to sleep. This is the most critical step in the process. And adding to this - visualize yourself as if you have already achieved your goal. Do this as often as you can during the day, even if only for a few moments.

And that’s it! With that, I now must bring this episode to a close. But before I do, I will say that Think and Grow Rich is a meditation unto itself. While we’ve laid some seeds in this video, I would recommend taking the time to go through the whole book, especially if it helps you conceptualize the principles on a deeper level.

With that, thank you for watching, and I’ll see you next week for something new!

[biot08]

By Popular Request, Adagio’s Will Fragment, related to the Gaming Guardians roleplay (now long over)

I, Adagio Redwinter, being of sound mind and body, do declare this to be my last Will and Testament.

On the Execution of my Will

Over the course of my operational existence, I have managed to accumulate a great many material things of varying levels of worth. This, I suppose, is due to my natural curiosity leading to me find the new and interesting, coupled with a lifespan that is unnaturally long for many sapient species. As well, various endeavors throughout my existence have lead me to make investments and to head several ventures, with varying levels of success and prosperity. It is now, at the end of my operational lifetime, that I intend to try and give some of what I have received back.

To see to the immense task of administering my final accounts, and to assure that my final wishes are carried out properly, I authorize my executor, Zeta Aquilae, to use those funds and materials necessary to establish the Synapse Intercorporation. The Intercorporation's internal structure and method of operation will be determined by her best judgement. The Synapse Intercorporation shall oversee the execution of my last wishes as described in this will.

It is worth noting that parts of this will are hidden from public view. This is not so much to hide anything of true note, but rather to allow some of my instructions to have a certain reactive quality to them, such that if certain conditions are met, other instructions may be carried out that may not be otherwise. My executor is aware of all of the hidden portions of my will, as well as the encryption keys necessary to view them.

I have been working on this will continuously for several years, always ensuring that it accurately reflects my wishes in the event of my demise, whether accidental or not. My understanding is that many sapients who have a tradition of finality similar to a will tend to use them as instruments of encouragement and revenge. The idea of continuing to influence the multiverse at large after my existence has ceased is one that amused me. If I have misunderstood the purpose of a will, I hope others shall view my attempt here in a reasonable light. I would caution those who read this to be aware that I am not human, and indeed, I believe I am the first of my kind to have a will of any sort. I would also note that, as my operational lifetime was originally expected to be infinite, and indeed has stretched on for a great many centuries, I do tend to take a very long view on matters. In addition to ensuring my own matters are tied up neatly, and designating specific recipients for parts of my estate, I have also made several bequests that I hope will benefit all sapients everywhere, both Primarian and System born.

I have always sought knowledge, and much of my life has been dedicated to seeking truth. I have not yet found it, but I hope that, through this will, I may lead others to find it, both for themselves and for others. I would implore all those who read this will to look to one another, and, if failing in all other tasks, that they may reach the lofty goal of one day ... understanding.

To Zeta Aquilae, who sought to understand me, and who was with me on my many travels, I leave the bulk of my estate, save for those things otherwise covered by this will. I name Zeta Aquilae the executor of my estate and the head of the Synapse Intercorporation, in which capacity she will oversee the execution of this will in accordance with my wishes.

To Nightdark, my original second, and so loyal to me all these years, I give you back your life and your freedom. I only wish I could give you your old life back, Megan. I hope that your memories will suffice.

In the memory of a woman who I was often at odds with, and yet who I still feel a deep kinship with, I find myself able to do little. I now realize the trick you played during our last game, old friend, and I hope that in the afterlife I am able to give you the match you deserve. In her memory, I present a red queen chess piece to the orange queen who now rules the forest in Gamer's End. May there forever be peace and understanding in the world she gave her life to birth.

To Aria Winters, I leave my memoirs, and my core, should it still remain, to be disposed of however she sees fit. I hope your path in life will be less troubled than mine was.

To Kale, I leave the Defender, and the legacy that goes along with it. The history of this vessel is long and deep, young Kale. You should ask Majir about it. I also give him my spaces onboard Prometheus Space Station, and my apartment in Gamer's End, as well as the contents of my bank account on Prometheus Station, and the key to my safety deposit box for the same. Remember that while the mind makes the man, the tools allow it to act better on its environment.

To Sage, I leave the Colossus, a five kilometer wide space ship that was carved out of an asteroid in BESM-SF 87-5-29. I am afraid, my dear, that this is the last rock I am able to give to you.

To the first two hundred people who show up, I leave a can of Sprite from my storage unit onboard Prometheus. One of the cans contains an actual sprite, but it got mixed in with the thoroughly mundane cans, and I never did get around to determining which can it was. I figure this is both a good way to make sure the sprite gets some use, as well as getting rid of a fair bit of unused stock. (( Note: If you want the special can, just hop on IRC and get ahold of me before the end of March. ))

To whoever determines the identity and composition of those figures who are in charge of the Gaming Guardians to the satisfaction of the Synapes Intercorporation, I leave the monetary equivalent of 20,000 XP. Transparency in operations might go a long way toward building good will, my friends. As well as being profitable.

To whoever finds Wargolem, I leave 1 million XP or medical care for the remainder of their natural life, whichever seems most appropriate.

To the first party to determine what 'Velvet Fist' is, I leave behind 10000XP.

To the person who finds the original 'Wirrit', I leave 6000 XP, so long as they deliver a copy of this will to her.

To the original 'Wirrit', I leave my yo-yo. Spend some time with it and consider that the nature of the multiverse is not as you thought it was.

To Majir Sobaan, I leave co-ordinates to a little known Fallout system. Do not be startled by what you find there. Hopefully it will explain much.

To Solita Ariennye, I leave my Seattle, Washington condo, a motorcycle, and the assets contained in the safety deposit box to which she will be given a key. While it is not the world you know and love, I hope you will enjoy Seattle, and your second retirement. I imagine you've learned your lesson.

Once a year, a jet black rose, preserved by freezing, shall be delivered to Solita Ariennye's condo in Seattle, for as long as she lives there, as a reminder that some loyalties have too high a price for us all.

Because we who occupy jaunt space are not always so careful as we should be, the Synapse Intercorporation is directed to establish the System Defenders. The goals of the Defenders are as follows: to monitor potential abuses of jaunt space and its denizens; to protect the rights of denizens of jaunt space; to establish a set of parameters that will facility a working relationship between those from the Systems and those from the Primary; to create a sanctuary in Jaunt space for beings in search of a safe retreat; and to patrol Jaunt space in such a way as to ensure that junk and debris accidentally or otherwise left in Jaunt is cleaned up in such a way as to prevent any interference with normal system development. Since many of these functions are already provided somewhat by Gamer's End and Prometheus, I use my last act as an owner of a Captain's Seat to propose that the systems already in place be diverted to form a better, more unified front for members of the Systems.

To any who find a vessel looking like BeRT ( photo attached ), or its Pilot unit, I authorize the payment of 5000 XP for its finding, and 15000 XP for its destruction. The possibility of its existence could mean a dark time for us all.

To the first fifty so-called 'voidkers' who show up to any branch of the Synapse Intercorporation, I grant a token of my esteem. The terrible events that have occurred in the voided Shadowrun system darken all our lives, and I hope to foster understanding between those who were touched by it and the rest of the multisystems at large as we move forward.

For research into jaunt phenomena considered dangerous, such as Jaunt storms and void patches, I leave four million XP, to be distributed by the Synapse Intercorporation.

To Nightengale Nightforest, whose voice is the purest I have ever heard, and moved me nearly to emotion, I know from our conversations that you have no further need for wealth. So I leave 3 million XP to be donated in your name to the charity of your choice.

I leave one hundred thousand XP to fund an expedition to Jaunt system FC-F 00-13-225.

I leave five thousand XP to fund the summoning of a spirit capable of traversing jaunt and casting a permanent Sex Change spell on the Shadowrunner known as 'Suit'. The spell will need to be of sufficient power that he will require external assistance in dispelling or reversing it. While I do not think it will change his outlook in life at all, the change in perspective for him may be educational, and if not that, at least entertaining. If some other method of bringing about the same end effect can be established, so much the better.

To the person who successfully finds what is behind door 13-B in the main building of the Church of True Harmony, I give 10000 XP upon its revelation to an authority of either the Guardians, the Defenders, or the Synapse Intercorporation.

[wileds]

hc. a golden eyes lore briefer.  shoddy tagging habits have failed me, but here are some found + expanded notes about my golden eyes lore:

his tribe (clarkia) and wider clan (the lakhdari) has its own lore around golden eyes and people with eyes the color of precious metals.

gold is most important! but there are stories for silver too and even copper and verdigris that developed separately from canon lore.  they don’t have silver-eyed warriors at all.  silver is linked with other associations.

their lore springs from how rich vacuo and the oasis was in the past, not only in dust, but in other materials.  metals, bullion, coin currency.  trading in kind was and remains common practice in some parts of vacuo, so this primacy of metals in the lore has its origins in connection to real historic prosperity, before plastic lien began to be circulated around all the kingdoms and before vacuo went seriously downhill.  the clarkias have been pretty steadily notable so the valuation and stories stuck with them, well preserved and thought real.  thus:  lore, not fairy tale.  symbolic connection to wealth and prosperity naturally followed.

golden eyed warriors are of particular significance because people born with golden eyes are thought to be likely to have / attain certain positive traits.  they’re viewed golden eyes as a sign that someone might be a good fighter.  it’s not just about physical prowess though.  the themes at the heart of the story are loyalty and self-sacrifice, willing or unwilling, and so martyrdom belongs here too.  the first golden eyed warrior was not a traditional warrior.

golden eyes, as we have seen in several characters, are not exactly rare to find in remnant.  rarity is not what makes the color notable.  just like for real gold, his tribe acknowledges a spectrum of shades:  yellow-gold vs rose gold vs honeyed, amber, burnished, ochre.  

some of these are valued (or valuated) more highly than others.  categorization is a lot to get into but one key question to ask is:  does it gleam?  does the shade seem particularly lustrous, polished, metallic;  truer and truer to the real thing?  i will also say: tapetum lucidum.  for over a decade one of the most well-regarded golden eyed warriors in his clan is love’s longtime trainer, leila bur, who is an oryx faunus.  she can see in the dark and has that light-reflection gleam.  this is ... in fact ... a point of interest!  ah!

off the top of my head, characters with gold/yellow eyes:  blake, tyrian, cinder.

so that’s interesting isn’t it.  i mean.  i mean.  i’m laughing.  let’s not talk about who love has been attracted to and if this has ever had any influence on aesthetic appeal.  none of them have ever deeply dealt with loyalty, self-sacrifice, or matrydom have they?  nope.

ironic that the clarkias still want to stay a human tribe, but that reasoning is wholly due to semblance, not this lore.  love’s eyes are golden and still considered quite pretty for several reasons [link] but based upon color alone they’re actually not the “highest grade” so to speak, which is the sort of language that they would use.  a vocabulary of appraisal.  leila’s eyes [in the banner] are pretty top tier.  

golden eyes lore involves a lot of death, (re)incarnation, and refinement, which i made up way before all of the oz revelations.  i wasn’t thinking about the maidens either when developing this lore, since maiden-stories in his tribe are rather ordinary.  my standard opening line even begins with: once upon a time, there was a man who died.

i 100% thank pr/incess tu/tu for that line and for giving me heaps more inspiration.

in conclusion:  this lore is layered and nicely applicable to a lot of things so that if someone has an eye color that falls into the umbrella, you can probably attribute a positive trait to them, even if done lightheartedly.  turn that lead into gold!  in general this lore isn’t super serious and is treated more like an elevated beauty standard?  it is most definitely not as serious as everything around blood affinity.  they don’t categorize the people, they just make note of eye color and its classic associations.  a “golden eyed warrior” has become a profession in the clan and not all of them have golden eyes.  gold actually in the small minority.  the title stems from the meaning of the thing  &  they don’t throw that title around casually.  so this lore not meant to be inaccessible through rarity nor is it linked to any particular power or magic!

[qm-vox]

The Dwelling Gods - Sitting The Table

Previous Chapter: Battles of Gatax-Ob

CW: Maiming, Suicide

Yrull-Gatax ra Vell, 243 Year of Imperium (9/12 2863 Astra Federation Standard Calendar; Approximately 2 months after signing the Terran Covenant)

GSS Chorus of Eyes, in orbit above the planet Gatax

A High Slayer’s ship says a lot about her priorities as a ruler and in turn about the Gataxian peoples’ fortunes. When we knew prosperity, it was not unusual for the soft larvae who called themselves Slayers to cruise the Pure States in yachts, throwing lavish parties for their subjects and throwing offerings of wealth to the people of the planets below. During the attempted cleansing of the wretched spirrans, my predecessor chose for his flagship the GSS Mournful Retribution, a Terravore-class battleship bristling with mass drivers that could crack continents. Powerful. Gaudy. Slow. The Astra Federation and their Revenants defeated it in detail, and all that remains of it now is a charred scrap of hull welded to the skirts of my throne.

Chorus of Eyes is different, almost like a space station; nestled amidst her guns are repair docks, advanced sensors, and hangar bays. It is a capital ship made to support and sustain a fleet, not to destroy one.

You cannot run a slaughterhouse if the workers have no knives.

I adjust myself on the perch of my throne, which has been carefully situated in the dining hall of my ship. There is no room for wasted space on a warrior’s vessel, but a Slayer, even the High Slayer, has political needs; the livery that decorates the place is a concession to those needs, amounting to approximately 100 kilograms of wasted weight on my ship. I tap one sharp fingertip against the metal perch of my throne and then speak into the room, for the benefit of the soldiers guarding myself and my viceroy: “The convicts are summoned into the Presence.”

Two of the soldiers leave their posts to do as they are bid. Beside me, my viceroy - Tiall-Gatax ra Noll, whose loyalty purchases for him an extensive right to back-talk and second-guess me - fidgets with the curved knife he holds in my name.

“The High Slayer is certain?” Tiall asks in a careful tone. I flap my wings just once, filling the air with glittering dust.

“These are uncertain times,” I answer, my voices vibrating softly through my carapace. “But I will follow through.”

We wait in silence that is disturbed only by the slow, drifting flap of our wings, until the doors open once more to admit the procession of convicts. Prison has not been kind to them; their carapaces are discolored, in some cases nearly bleached, and their wings are tattered and rotten, and in some cases have had to be surgically removed. Most are missing at least one finger, very much including the defiant young thing at their head. He is known to me; Professor Faul-Vran ra Rell’s trial had been national news among the Pure Peoples. Being convicted of treason and xenophilia destroyed his career and his life.

The hate in his multifaceted eyes reminds me of the eyes I see in the mirror.

“You stand before the Presence,” the soldiers boom in unison. “All hail Yrull-Gatax ra Vell, High Slayer and Protector of the Pure!”

I hold up a hand. “We will be dispensing with the formalities,” I say to the soldiers. “Release the convicts and escort them to their seats. Inform the galley that we are ready to receive the meal I have ordered.”

The Professor’s voices are a reedy whistle, made high and tight by holes punched in his carapace during his capture - holes which, by custom, were treated for infection only during his incarceration. But for all of that, I can feel his rage. “Why should I drink from any cup the Presence lifts?”

This is what I had been waiting for. I take to the air and come to rest at the head of one of the hall’s long tables, in plain view of the convicts - xenophiles, one and all. Dust scatters into the air from my wings, and soon enough my viceroy has joined me.

“Remind the Presence of the penalty for treason among the Pure,” I prompt, as the soldiers continue to unshackle my prisoners. I can see his pierced carapace trying to swell in anger, and interrupt immediately: “Humor me,” I tell the Professor, in my softest voices.

Professor Faul deflates with a rusty wheeze. “One finger,” he answers. “Removed so that even if the guilty know the mercy of the Presence, all will know their sin for what it is.”

I set my left hand down on the table, as flat as it will go. “Tiall.”

It hurts, when Tiall cuts the smallest finger from my left hand; the blood gushes from the cut, at least until one of my soldiers reaches me to cauterize it. Through it all, though, I have eyes only for the Professor, and at length he takes the high seat he has been offered. I let my soldier fuss over the cut for a long minute before I firmly and finally remind them that I had, in fact, given an order for a meal to be retrieved.

“You were right. All of you were right in your insistence that ignorance of our enemies would be our undoing,” I tell the gathered convicts. “Now the Pure People have been forced into alliance with the terrans and their Astra Federation, and I am neither so proud nor so stupid as to rebuke the knowledge you have to offer to us. As of this moment, you are pardoned formally of your crimes, and all sentences of xenophilia within the Pure States are being processed. The majority of the surviving convicts will be transported to terran space.” The fingers of my right hand curl inward, leaving curling gouges in the wood of the table. “They are not safe among their own people. Our new...friends...insisted, and we are in no position to debate the point.”

Professor Faul cannot draw in enough air for a proper laugh, and the end result of his hateful mirth is a series of pathetic squeaking sounds. “And you have brought us here to tell the grand tales of the High Slayer’s wisdom and mercy? Will you crawl into my cell and serve my long years of labor as well?”

“No, to both points.” I gesture to my viceroy, who takes out his dataslate to begin recording and annotating notes. “Each of you has been brought here because your...offenses...were singular, relating to the gathering of knowledge about xeno culture and technology. Professor, you said during your trial that you love your people and your nation. I believe you still do. The Presence and the Pure Peoples would ask you for that knowledge now.” I pause, letting the wretches before me register their surprise, before I continue. “Once primed and provided with reading material, the Presence would also commission your services in a diplomatic corps, that the Pure Peoples might sit the table of this...federation...we have been so enthusiastically extorted into joining, and make our will known to it.”

Professor Faul seems to struggle with whether he wants to be educational or enraged, but to his considerable credit he settles on the former. “The Presence is wise to understand that she will have much to learn that we cannot cover in a single dinner. Diplomacy with the terrans could be dangerous, especially until we find a counter for their...powers. I believe I can speak for my peers in saying that we require time to confer, and to offer our desires to the Presence in this matter.”

“Forty-eight hours,” I answer. “Starting after dinner. Your freedom and the gift of mercy is surely worth some remedial tutoring.”

“Ha. Even so, High Slayer. Even so.”

First Course: Politics

Luxury dining would be yet more wasted weight on my ship - and worse, weight wasted solely on myself and my advisors - but I can hardly serve my guests naval cuisine after a stay in prison. They would be under the understandable impression that they had never left. The ship’s medic had worked with the galley to draw up three courses that would not shred their digestion, and I waited until they had the chance to eat the first (a sweet nectar soup, made thick with porous noodles and chunks of meat) before I singled out my first topic of interest.

“I am given to understand that this Astra Federation we have so recently joined has similarities to the Pure Peoples’ own governance?” I suggest, as bowls are being cleared away. The way the soldiers assigned to that task cannot seem to decide if they are being honored or punished is most fun I’ve had in more than a year.

Silence greets my question as old instincts assert themselves among the convicts, but at length an elder (Ryull-Mox ra Nuir, if memory serves) shakes her crippled wings and speaks up in weak voices.

“Superficially, High Slayer,” the elder begins. “The Astra Federation does indeed represent a central body, which deals with matters of state which affect its members, regulates trade between them, provides for the common defense, and sets standards of sapient rights. Like the Pure Peoples, representatives are sent to its central body - the Astral Chamber - through democratic means. However, they do not appoint a central executive officer, which is to say, they have no High Slayer or analogous office. Their Admiralty is managed by appointed council instead, one from each member state.”

I keep my eyes on Ryull; my fingers gouge faint lines in the wood of the table as I idly trace patterns in it to keep my hands busy. “I see. And these members? How do they exert their influence?”

Ryull-Mox ra Nuir’s carapace swells in a cough, and then her voices are stronger and more clear. “Excluding ourselves, High Slayer, the voting members of the Astra Federation include the nations of Risen Terra, the United Spirran Communes, the Ibraxian States, and the Assisted Living Complexes ruled by the so-called ‘helper-bots’. Each full voting member sends one representative from each of its developed worlds, and any protectorate states under their influence send one representative total.”

I tap my finger. “I seem to recall those machines having a history of abducting organics.”

“They currently have many newly-founded protectorate states being encouraged to develop into full members,” the elder answers. Do I detect a hint of sass? “In terms of numbers, we are set to become an influential member of this federation, should the Presence choose to do so. Defeating it through force of arms has not historically been an option for the Pure Peoples.”

My wings twitch involuntarily, filling the air with dust. “Don’t remind me.”

Second Course: History

Tiall takes down a long list of reading suggestions on the topic of the Astra Federation and its various cultures while the next course is brought in; the plates of pull-apart bread, stuffed with a gently-spiced slurry of meats and vegetables, almost resemble quivering piles of noodles. From the soft noises of delight the convicts give off, my guess that a childhood favorite would soften the mood seems to have paid off.

There’s absolutely no point in trying to talk during the initial flurry of eating, so I may as well enjoy some myself, admittedly at a more sedate pace. I’ll need the energy for this next conversation in any event.

When the meal has started to calm down again, I turn my attention to the Professor. “Your -” I hesitate for a moment before coming to a decision, “colleague, rather pointedly referenced numbers in terms of our influence. But if this federation is so much like the Pure States, then numbers are only part of the story.”

That reedy wheeze again. “Astute of you, High Slayer. In practical terms, the terrans and their government exercise quite a bit of control over the Astra Federation.” Professor Faul sets down the chunk of stuffed bread he’d picked up in his pointed fingers. “As you well know, terran culture was the focus of my...alternative...research.”

I restrain the angry twitch of my wings. “I am here to learn, Professor. This will be easier if you can think of me as your student for the span of a conversation rather than dragging out your entirely reasonable, but utterly unhelpful, grievance every other sentence. Do me this courtesy.”

The Professor is silent, and at length takes a drink of the water before him, as if to get more time to think. Finally, he bobs his agreement. “What would the Presence know of the Children of the Phoenix?”

I take off from my seat to hover back from the table; it helps me think. “I want to know how they got here, what they believe, and why they believe it. The summary, for now, but if we’re being honest it is my intention to appoint you in particular as our emissary to them. The other...experts...have mainly died in captivity.”

Professor Faul attempts to inhale in order to begin his response, and instead wheezes for nearly a minute. I signal for a medic to be brought in - one will be needed for him sooner rather than later in any event - but he finds his breath before a serious emergency can develop. “This topic...” he wheezes deeply again, steadying himself, “is as complex as our own history. Any summary I can offer the Presence will be criminally simplified. With that caveat given, I will proceed. Would the Presence be able to supply a display?”

I nod to Tiall, who gets on the comms to see it done. The wait gives everyone time to finish this course and rinse their tongues with water, to say nothing of the medic arriving. The death glare I’m given by the physician would have gotten her shot by my predecessor, and I respond to it with dignified indifference. The professional dedication I seek in my personnel is, after all, what breeds such attitudes.

At length, the Professor leaves his seat (still attended by my oh-so-dedicated medic) to fuss with the display wheeled in by whichever luckless soldiers answered the comms. I can hear him muttering to himself about old equipment and throttle the urge to snipe back. Excuse the Presence for not wasting her people’s money on cutting-edge media technology for her military vessel, civilian.

With the display arranged to his liking, the Professor taps the side of it to get the attention of what is now his class. I briefly glare at the soldiers trying to surreptitiously lean around so they can see better, and they snap back to attention at their posts.

“The people who now call themselves terrans are not natives of Risen Terra,” Professor Faul begins; he swiftly sketches and obscures a crude planet on the display. “Much like the early days of gataxian interstellar colonization, they began aboard a sub-light ship, in their case pitched through an unstable wormhole. This would prove to have grave consequences on their development, as they were cut off utterly from their original homeworld.” He writes something in their strange script beneath the obscured planet and pronounces its name with great difficulty, “Earth, or more literally, ‘Dirt’. This would have been roughly 1850 to 1890 Pre-Imperium, around the time the Pure Peoples began our own sub-light colonization of neighboring systems.”

Tiall can’t seem to help himself: “Is there a reason they chose to go such an unknown distance with so few certainties?”

“All sapient life has reasons for behaving as it does,” Professor Faul says in that rusty wheeze. “But thus far my main theory is that they are insane.”

“There will be ample opportunity for you to ask them yourself,” I interject sharply. “Stay on-task please, Professor.”

“As the Presence demands.” Professor Faul begins writing a list of book names with one sharp finger. “The intervening history is written of extensively by the terrans, but in summation their early years were marked by strife over the perception of limited resources on their new home world, culminating in a thermonuclear war that decimated their culture. From the ashes of that conflict rose the original form of their current government, the Phoenix Council, which began the grueling project of uniting and caring for the disparate survivors. Access to knowledge from their original culture softened the technological blow of the devastation, and space colonization efforts followed. During this time period, the first terran psychics were confirmed, as we can see in the debates recorded in -”

I scrape my claws down the table, and the Professor stops. “The first?”

Professor Faul bobs his agreement. “The current state of nearly total saturation of psionic power was the result of deliberate cultural and religious cultivation of the power, coinciding with the rise of a sort of animistic faith that syncretized with many of their prior religions. The culmination of that being, of course, their faith in the so-called ‘Dwelling Gods’ that they believe exist in symbiosis with their own minds, whose worship has since become the dominant terran religion since its inception. Terrans credit these gods with providing the knowledge and insight needed to defeat the previous hivemind.”

“Why make such a covenant? What drives their...” I force the word ‘degeneracy’ down before my voices can give it life, “inclusive belief system?”

At this the Professor hesitates. One pointed finger idly traces at the corner of the display, leaving swirls and loops. “A combination of xenophobia and xenophilia, I believe,” he begins at last. “Terrans fear those who are not part of their family-groups or national identities, but they will readily absorb even inanimate objects into such groups or identities as long as they conform to a minimum amount of cultural touchstones. They do not seem to have any innate psychological fear of other species, the way gataxians do, and will readily bond even with animals they consider prey - up to and including those they intend to kill and eat themselves later.”

“Disgusting,” another of the convicts notes.

“Be silent in class,” I snap, before I return my attention to the Professor. “Will they keep their word?”

“Without a doubt,” he answers immediately. “Even at a disadvantage to themselves. To break a covenant is as unthinkable to a modern terran as...as it would be to imagine you, High Slayer, breeding with xenos. If you will forgive my crudity.”

Silence reigns in the dining hall, without even the beat of wings to disturb it.

“This time,” I answer, and everyone starts breathing again. “We will take a brief recess so that we can clear our minds,” I continue. “Professor, walk with me.”

“Will the Presence require an escort?” Tiall asks.

“The Presence is more than capable of defending herself,” I answer, perhaps more curtly than I ought to have. To his credit, my viceroy acquiesces with no further comment, smoothly moving to manage my other guests. Professor Faul falls in with me, and we move sedately towards one of the ship’s few lounges, which contains an equally rare resource: a damn window. Discreet texting on my comm device ensures that the lounge is emptied of my soldiers when the two of us finally arrive, many minutes later.

Just out the window, Gatax - my homeworld, and the heart of the Pure Peoples - turns slowly. We watch it wordlessly, the silence broken only by the wounded wheezing of my guest.

“You despise us still, High Slayer,” Professor Faul says at last. “Why did you call for us?”

I rest my freshly-maimed hand against the glass of the window and suck a deep breath in through my carapace. “There are many titles given to the head of the Gataxian Pure States, Professor. ‘High Slayer’ is the most venerated, yes, naming me as the greatest war-maker of a people who worship carnage, but I question its validity. I am no mere Slayer, to be fired at our enemies and forgotten. I am the Protector of the Pure, the Speaker of Many Tongues, the Eyes of the Wise. Our people are boxed in by this...Astra Federation, by powerful cultures who see us not as equals or even rivals but as an unruly attraction to be kept in our nation like an elaborate zoo. It becomes clear to me that we must change or die.”

Professor Faul gives me a curious look, his multifaceted eyes glittering in the reflected light from our shared homeworld.

“...Yes, Professor, I hate you. You and the others I have brought here. But if your knowledge could save even a single gataxian life, and I spurn it? Then the only titles I am worthy of are Traitor and Fool.”

Admiral Alekto Molteira, 9/14 Astra Federation Standard Calendar; Approximately 2 months after sponsoring the Gataxian Pure States into the Astra Federation

“Marathon” Strategic Coordination Relay (Assisted Living System space), Solace system

The last of the aides filters into the secure meeting room, and We take a deep breath. Those gathered before Us represent the highest echelons of the Astra Federation’s navy; all of them are beings of long experience and solemn duty, just as We are, but even so what We bring before them today...well.

“We won’t waste your time,” We begin, the moment the doors close and the security systems engage. “Two months ago We engaged Doctor Alexandra Orlstasz, an archaeologist and one of Terra’s most skilled psychometrists, to assist the Admiralty in gathering intelligence on the hivemind. They died in the line of duty after attempting a direct read on one of the hivemind’s drones.”

“Gods Within,” Our closest neighbor - Admiral Agammemnon Eslirit - breathes. “What were they hoping to accomplish?”

“Hope? Admiral, the Doctor succeeded in giving us a broad but disjointed snapshot of the hivemind’s past and activities. What little we have been able to filter safely has been invaluable in anticipating its strategy and slowing its advance into gataxian space.” We take a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Further translation of the impressions is underway as fast as can be safely accomplished, but one piece of information in particular is the cause for this meeting. We know the name and precise location of the hivemind’s home world, and therefore the epicenter of its controlled galactic space.”

“Well?” Admiral Villistiaiv, representing the Spirrans, prompts in the psionic voice that serves those fungal folk in lieu of vocal chords.

We’ve had all day to prepare for this moment, but We still barely get the words out.

“Earth,” We tell them. “In the Sol system.”