#sacred tools

[raining-tulips]

All I’m saying is certain pots/pans are sacred. I know bc if I try and make something I’ve made a hundred times in a different vessel it doesn’t turn out right.

[kurbiismind]

Oh hey, Slime tools.

[vaguely-concerned]

lucanis truly has a near terminal case of burned out golden child syndrome. caterina fucked both of these kids over so incredibly bad with the dynamic she enforced there, with illario being labled the perpetual fuckup kid where lucanis 'could do no (would never be allowed to do) wrong'. the way he admits in the first coffee date scene that the only thing that happened when he showed he could carry the weight of expectation was that more weight was added makes me so sad. you can hear it in caterina's voice in his intro mission that she's incredibly proud of him, but this is clearly a leandra and hawke situation where that pride never translates into relief or resolution or unconditional warmth or understanding or anything that really helps.

[thesorceresstemple]

[crazycatsiren]

Have an altar, or don't.

Keep it however and wherever you want, if you do want one.

Arrange it how you like it. Put as much or as little stuff as you want on it. Put whatever you feel like on it. Remove it if you no longer like it.

Change it up once in a while, or don't.

[merakisphere]

If you've ever felt an unexplainable connection to a pattern or been mesmerized by a particular design, you've most likely experienced Sacred Geometry without even realizing it.

Sacred Geometry is everywhere around us, from the things we touch, the details of nature, to even our own DNA. My 3D Geometric Flower of Life are designed with the essence of sacred geometry and interwoven patterns of circles and loops. This highlights the universal design language of the cosmos and the existence of life itself. Explore dozens of energy shapes that symbolize the universe such as spirals and galaxies, and intricate designs of a snowflake.

The shapes you can make from this intricate piece are everywhere, serving as the bridge between the analytical and the intuitive. This invites us into a coherent understanding of the abstract and the tangible, fueling both our intellect and our awe.

Link to my handmade sacred geometry pieces below. Great gift idea this holiday season for a unique and different kind of gift. Or an ornament. It makes a nice ornament also...

https://merakisphere.etsy.com/listing/876245515

[deardoomedworld]

Talking about how affable yet ruthless Inayat "tyrant of love" Khan is has made me start thinking about Jesper and how prickly he is. He's so mean, even purposefully vicious - think of how he talks to Anita when he leaves, and how after that harrowing conversation, he's literally fantasising about how he could've been even meaner - he seems to find some sort of satisfaction/relief in being mean, in the little bit of power and control it temporarily gives him (over someone else's emotions, which is better than nothing when you feel powerless).

When we first meet them as adults, Jesper seems more detached from the other two (or alternatively, Khan and Tereesz seem closer), not just because of an earlier falling out with Khan but because he seems more put together. Tereesz' and Khan's careers/lives are more obviously shaped by their childhood trauma, while Jesper is succesful, rich, and famous. He seems better adjusted and perhaps like he moved on more than the others. Jesper's jabs towards Tereesz and Khan (think of how he tells them that them visiting the Lund girls' mother is sad/pathetic while he did the same thing; or the "those of us whose profession does not include ditches and missing children" comment) seem specifically meant to make himself look more normal. He's wearing white. He's not sullied.

This is of course just a facade. Later on in the book, it becomes clear (at least that's my interpretation) that Jesper is just as, if perhaps not more fucked up than the others, and keeps them at arms length because he's trying to hide this. His privilege - his wealth and his looks (as a blonde, blue-eyed Vaasan) - plays a big role in him succeeding in this. The other two are constantly reminded that they're immigrants, and already have to put in more effort than Jesper just to be treated normally (Tereesz is very good at this when he's not inebriated, as he seems to have dumped a bunch of skill points in composure & authority. Khan not so much), let aside when they're unraveling.

But back to his prickly exterior, his meanness. I find it interesting that as unlikeable as he is, he also seems to completely break down once Tereesz gets shot. He builts a little tomb for Tereesz' gun and then sets off to, apparently, do coke for two months and then disappear himself (we get a nice close-up of his passport, his identity, burning up before he enters the Lungs of Graad). As much as he mocked Tereesz and Khan, he seemed completely on board to leave his life behind and go with Khan's plan, but then he just abandons that after the events or chapter 18. Because... "It's become too morbid for Jesper."

Behind his likeability, Khan is revealed to be somewhat ruthless- there's nothing he won't do for this cause, nothing that can stand in his way. Jesper, vicious as he was, breaks down quickly, because his meanness was for hiding vulnerability. He was trying so hard to be normal. ("This is sad? It's all totally great!") The Ibex English translation uses the word morbid a few times, and it's often in relation to Jesper. ("I don't collect anything, you morbos.") So, behind his prickliness, is Jesper the one made of mushier stuff, who can't handle the bad stuff well? The soft one who just breaks, in the end? The sentimental one, holding onto scrunchies and service weapons.

It's counterintuitive because he's so mean, but maybe Jesper is in white because he's more innocent, more childlike? ("To this day, he hates adult sexuality. (...) Realistically, and in a paradoxical way, this makes him a p*dophile.") After all, if you search the word white through the Ibex translation, almost all instances of its use are used to refer to a Lund girl, or Jesper.

Is. Is this anything.

[waitineedaname]

reading the novel, i love how blatantly indulgent of the juniors lan wangji is. when he was their age, he was duelling wei wuxian over broken rules and lived his life by behaving as precisely as what was expected of him, and now as an adult, he's basically letting the juniors do whatever they want as long as it isn't unsafe and generally letting the kids act like kids

which leaves wei wuxian to have to be the one playing bad cop. wei "has never followed anyone else's rules in his life" "bane of lan qiren's existence" "public enemy number one" wuxian has to be the one being like "oh my god don't burn money on someone else's doorstep, don't you know that's rude. you kids need to focus on your studies more, why isn't anyone teaching you anything useful, do i have to do everything myself around here"

[autumnoficarus]

i can't stop listening to the 'purpose is glorious' track from this season's ost and thinking about how lovely the title and its meaning are. it's just such an amazing underlying theme in this show, and - while i do have criticisms about some of the choices made for the series finale - i really do feel the writers wholeheartedly delivered in sending that message home. for me personally, loki's ending is so gratifying and a large part of that is solely from viewing their arc's conclusion with the perspective of this theme in mind. to have spent years watching this character i hold very dear to my heart struggle to find belonging, to feel as though they matter and there is reason in their existence, finally get a chance to show - and recognize - their worth was so, so rewarding. and honestly, i think the message behind the phrasing of 'purpose is glorious' is all the more meaningful because of how loki's arc finished. yes, the outcome was bittersweet; yes, we're left knowing loki didn't get the happiness they undeniably earned after everything they'd gone through. it smarts something fierce to know their journey up until they deviated from their timeline and became a variant, as well as seen their eventual intended fate. the ache is only worsened after witnessing everything that happens within the TVA and the entirety of loki's character growth leading up to a redefining moment where they willingly choose to undergo a nightmarish amount of time in the endeavor to do the right thing. of course we want them to emerge victorious when they've struggled for so long, but that's not the point. loki's final moments are them forfeiting their right to a happy ending to preserve the stories of others because all stories matter and should inherently reserve the free will to be written; as sylvie says, loki makes their choice so their loved ones and life across the multiverse still have a chance to belong somewhere and embrace their place in the world. the take away is that even burden can be glorious. even with all the hardships of life - all the inevitable heartache, disappointment, and grief we encounter just by being alive - we have meaning in our existence. there is meaning in the trials we face, and the suffering we endure in order to overcome them. our pain gives us purpose; it gives us the ability to love, to grow from and for each other, and choose to sacrifice our happiness for the benefit of another. loki's purpose was forged in the bonds of those they met in their time at the TVA and the sense of value they gained from their companionship. their sacrifice perfectly conveys how the human capacity to love is one of cosmic greatness, which can ultimately surpass our instinctual desire to preserve one's self. we can move immovable mountains and challenge insurmountable adversity in behalf of the ones we love and their welfare. if that isn't an act deserving of glory, I don't know what is.

tldr; loki's purpose is the friends they made along the way = as the saying goes, 'tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all'. or: our own lives have purpose because of the connections we share with others, even when we are met with great loss.

[emblemxeno]

Tbh idk how to feel about the Attuned Heroes thing cause while the mechanic itself isn't too complicated to understand, I really don't think there needed to be another unit type to manage. There's been a new type of unit added every year since the game launched. Legendary (2017), Mythic (2018), Duo (2019), Harmonized (2020), Ascended (2021), Rearmed (2022), and now Attuned in 2023.

Will the new skill slot really do anything more for older units than rearmed already does? Maybe I just need to give it a couple more banners to form a better opinion, but as it is now it's pretty underwhelming.

[alienscty]

so I am starting a new series of devotional altar shelves for those with limited space

[violetmoondaughter]

The cup can be made of various materials including glass, metal, horn, crystal, wood, porcelain and can be plain, colored or decorated with symbols or applications. The shape of the chalice itself can vary from simple glass, cup, globet to more elaborate shapes. The traditional form is that of the chalice used to hold wine. In popular tradition the chalice is primarily associated with the symbol of the Holy Grail, a cup with miraculous healing powers, sometimes providing eternal youth or sustenance in infinite abundance.

[lesb0]

today i was arguing with a student what constitutes writing, as that can range from glyphs to script to characters, and asked if a shape or color could be writing? she says, well no of course not. in most visual cultures, those are decorations, not communication. then i asked, if i showed you, a young american woman, a red octagon, is that communication? and she finally GOT it. that is semiotics!!

[thormanick]

SPOILERS FOR CARIBERT AND KAEYA'S LORE

*sad, sad sigh* so I suppose Kaeya can be. the Loom of Fate, or be very directly related to the operation. Because if he's the "last hope" of his homeland, and if he was left in Mond on purpose, and if Alberich senior really saw the salvation in the power of the Abyss sealed within a living being, and decided that the Loom of Fate will save/help them all...

Oh Kaeya. I'm sad to suspect you are a weapon of your homeland regardless of your own wishes.

[speargifted]

//i just,, needed to sketch this out,,,

[withoutalice]

not to do too much religious yapping but to be honest, the common religious puritanical deliberate ignorance on how medical care has improved over time and what the benefits of hormonal/surgical procedures on quality of life is definitely not what God would want.

(i continue yapping under the cut)

in fact, in part of the Bible, God forbade eating certain animals. when humans had learned how to properly cook/prepare meat (so parasites would not survive), God sent a vision to one of his followers saying all those animals were available to eat now. there was a timeline where it made sense to forbid certain meats.

now in modern times, lots of puritanical culture talks about the Bible forbidding sex for recreation (also forbidding any sort of hormone manipulators on principle) which I think in older times would make sense as people were not the best with germs and hadnt had the pharmaceutical knowledge we have today. God sees how our planet changes and people evolve.

I think if he were to send down a vision today (like the meat vision mentioned earlier) he would say things like contraceptives, hormone therapy, and other health procedures are valid.

we have more knowledge, not complete, but more knowledge. though more unbiased research on women's biology, especially with reproductive health (not just for pregnancy!!), is needed and I recognize that.

I also recognize people in these puritan circles correlate hormonal balance drugs for women (or other vaginal health products in general) with someone being a “slut” or being sexually active in any way at all even if it isn't true.

it's incredibly invasive for doctors and family to treat 8-16 year old girls like they are always having sex behind parent's backs, and i personally think it should be considered verbal sexual harassment or even abuse to make jokes about your pre-teen or newly teen daughter becoming a whore once she starts leaving the house on her own for school/sports; for getting treatment she need to function in a world designed for amab body schedules.

but overall there is no need for such suffering if there are things that have been observed to help. like birth control for women with endo or PCOS. if we can start to help ourselves with the natural, various differences that occur in our bodies, we should. because the 14/15/16 year olds with endometriosis/PCOS and the 6/7/8 year olds with precocious puberty are shamed by family and teachers for being deviant and unpure (for their body shape and) for getting the medical help they need to live full lives.

this culture needs to change, humans have made significant unprecedented progress in medicine. why live on earth paralyzed with pain and scarring? with constant medical abuse because our female bodies are different? it is no different than the changing of how we cook, God would want us to take advantage of the tools and intelligence we have. He has us here so we can take care of this one Earth, our (chosen or blood) family, and most importantly ourselves.

He loves us, no conditions. How your body looks, what your body consists of, what your body and mind have been through doesn't change that.

And i think, that if you loved someone unconditionally, wouldn't you want them to live the best life they can?