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QMRThe Navajo traditionally hold the four sacred mountains as the boundaries of the homeland (Dinétah) they should never leave: Blanca Peak (Sisnaajiní — Dawn or White Shell Mountain) in Colorado; Mount Taylor (Tsoodził — Blue Bead or Turquoise Mountain) in New Mexico; the San Francisco Peaks (Dookʼoʼoosłííd — Abalone Shell Mountain) in Arizona; and Hesperus Mountain (Dibé Nitsaa — Big Mountain Sheep) in Colorado.
QMRScholars and historians note the philosophical idea of "tzimtzum" as the core of their argument. The Vilna Gaon rejected the Baal Hatanya's ideas as heresy. In 1797 (during the lifetime of the Vilna Gaon) the Baal Hatanya wrote a lengthy responsa explaining his view on this matter to his Chassidim in Vilna. Despite the dispute, he requested his Hasidim to respect the Gaon and not to engage in arguments with the misnagdim.[5]
Much has been written on this fundamental debate. It has been addressed by the Vilna Gaon's disciple and successor Rabbi Chaim Volozhin,[6] the Baal Haleshem,[7] Rabbi Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler and others. The Lubavitcher Rebbe divides the debate to four schools of thought.[8][9]
QMRThe Talmud (tractate Sabb. 115b) states that a peculiar section in the Book of Numbers (10:35–36, surrounded by inverted Hebrew letter nuns) in fact forms a separate book. On this verse a midrash on the book of Mishle (English Proverbs) states that "These two verses stem from an independent book which existed, but was suppressed!" Another (possibly earlier) midrash, Ta'ame Haserot Viyterot, states that this section actually comes from the book of prophecy of Eldad and Medad. The Talmud says that God dictated four books of the Torah, but that Moses wrote Deuteronomy in his own words (Talmud Bavli, Meg. 31b).
QMRThe name Maccabee[24] is often used as a synonym for the entire Hasmonean dynasty, but the Maccabees proper were Judah Maccabee and his four brothers. The name Maccabee was a personal epithet of Judah,[25] and the later generations were not his direct descendants. One explanation of the name's origins is that it derives from the Aramaic "makkaba", "the hammer", in recognition of Judah's ferocity in battle.[26] The traditional Jewish explanation is that Maccabee (Hebrew: מקבים Machabi, מקבים) is an acronym for the Torah verse that was the battle-cry of the Maccabees, "Mi chamocha ba'elim YHW and H", "Who is like You among the heavenly powers, Hashem!",[27][28] as well as an acronym for "Matityahu Kohen ben Yochanan. The correlating Torah verse Exodus 15:11, The song of Moses and the Children of Israel by the Sea,[27] makes a reference to Elim, with a mundane notion of natural forces, heavenly might, war and governmental powers. The scholar and poet Aaron Kaminka argues that the name is a corruption of Machbanai, a leading commando in the army of King David.[29]
Maccabees goes up to four books although it is not in the common bible cannon.
QMRThe dreidel, or sevivon in Hebrew, is a four-sided spinning top that children play with during Hanukkah. Each side is imprinted with a Hebrew letter. These letters are an abbreviation for the Hebrew words נס גדול היה שם (Nes Gadol Haya Sham, "A great miracle happened there"), referring to the miracle of the oil that took place in the Beit Hamikdash.
נ (Nun)
ג (Gimel)
ה (Hey)
ש (Shin)
On dreidels sold in Israel, the fourth side is inscribed with the letter פ (Pe), rendering the acronym נס גדול היה פה (Nes Gadol Haya Po, "A great miracle happened here"), referring to the fact that the miracle occurred in the land of Israel, although this is a relatively recent innovation. Stores in Haredi neighborhoods sell the traditional Shin dreidels as well, because they understand "there" to refer to the Temple and not the entire Land of Israel, and because the Hasidic Masters ascribe significance to the traditional letters.
Some Jewish commentators ascribe symbolic significance to the markings on the dreidel. One commentary, for example, connects the four letters with the four exiles to which the nation of Israel was historically subject: Babylonia, Persia, Greece, and Rome.[66]
After lighting the Hanukkah menorah, it is customary in many homes to play the dreidel game: Each player starts out with 10 or 15 coins (real or of chocolate), nuts, raisins, candies or other markers, and places one marker in the "pot." The first player spins the dreidel, and depending on which side the dreidel falls on, either wins a marker from the pot or gives up part of his stash. The code (based on a Yiddish version of the game) is as follows:
Nun–nisht, "nothing"–nothing happens and the next player spins
Gimel–gants, "all"–the player takes the entire pot
Hey–halb, "half"–the player takes half of the pot. If there are an odd number of markers, usually the player takes the extra one too.
Shin–shtel ayn, "put in"–the player puts one marker in the pot
Another version differs:
Nun–nem, "take"–the player takes one from the pot
Gimel–gib, "give"–the player puts one in the pot
Hey–halb, "half"–the player takes half of the pot
Shin–shtil, "still" (as in "stillness")–nothing happens and the next player spins
The game may last until one person has won everything.
Tradition has it that the reason the dreidel game is played is to commemorate a game devised by the Jews to camouflage the fact that they were studying Torah, which was outlawed by the Seleucids. The Jews would gather in caves to study, posting a lookout to alert the group to the presence of Seleucid soldiers. If soldiers were spotted, the Jews would hide their scrolls and spin tops, so the Seleucids thought they were gambling, not learning.[67]
The historical context may be from the time of the Bar-Kohba war, 132-135 C.E. when the penalty for teaching Torah was death, so decreed by Rome. Others trace the dreidel itself to the children's top game Teetotum.[68] However, the dreidel game as we know it arose among the Ashkenazim. It is not a Sephardi tradition, though, of course, just like the singing of Maos Tzur, it has been adopted by other, non-Ashkenazi families.
Dreidel gelt (dreidel money): The Eastern European game of dreidel (including the letters nun, gimmel, hey, shin) is like the German equivalent of the totum game: N = Nichts = nothing; G = Ganz = all; H = Halb = half; and S = Stell ein = put in. In German, the spinning top was called a "torrel" or "trundl," and in Yiddish it was called a "dreidel," a "fargl," a "varfl" [= something thrown], "shtel ein" [= put in], and "gor, gorin" [= all]. When Hebrew was revived as a spoken language, the dreidel was called, among other names, a sevivon, which is the one that caught on.
Some Hasidic Rebbes may play the dreidel game at their Tish, and often spiritual significance is attributed to this practice.
Some Hasidic children play with regular spinning tops on Hanukah, and also call them by the Yiddish name "dreidel".
Revival: At the time when Rabbi Yisrael Ba'al Shem Tov founded Hasidism, the Jews were physically crushed by massacres (in particular, those of the Cossack leader Chmelnitzki in 1648-1649) and poverty, and spiritually crushed by the disappointment engendered by the false messiahs. This unfortunate combination caused religious observance to seriously wane. This was especially true in Eastern Europe, where Hasidism began. Hasidism came to revive the Jews physically and spiritually. It focused on helping Jews establish themselves financially, and then lifting their morale and religious observance through its teachings.
Piety: A Hasid, in classic Torah literature, refers to one of piety beyond the letter of the law. Hasidism demands and aims at cultivating this extra degree of piety. Not from a legal perspective, but out of love of the Creator.
Refinement: Hasidism teaches that one should not merely strive to improve one's character by learning new habits and manners. Rather a person should completely change the quality, depth and maturity of one's nature. This change is accomplished slowly by carrying out the practices of Hasidic Philosophy, and travelling to see the Rebbe, the leader of the Hasidic sect to which one belongs.
Demystification: In Hasidism, it is believed that the esoteric teachings of Kabbalah can be made understandable to everyone. This understanding is meant to help refine a person, as well as adding depth and vigor to one's ritual observance.
In general, Hasidism claims to prepare the world for Moshiach, the Jewish Messiah, through these four achievements.
In a letter, the Ba'al Shem Tov describes how one Rosh Hashana his soul ascended to the chamber of Moshiach, where he asked Moshiach, "when will the master (Moshiach) come." Moshiach answered him, "when the wellsprings of your teachings, which I have taught you, will be spread out."
QMRHasidic philosophy teaches that knowledge of God is the essence of the Torah and of everything in the world.[5] Hasidic Philosophy (along with Kabbalah) is also known as "Pnimiyut HaTorah", the Inner Dimension of the Torah. The first premise of Hasidic Philosophy is God and His unity: that God transcends everything and, yet, is found in everything.[5] God transcends all forms and limitations, even the most sublime. To God all forms are equal, and so His intents can be discovered in all of them equally. All existence is an expression of His Being. In the Baal Shem Tov's words, "God is everything and everything is God."
(This is a very subtle and difficult subject, based on the Kabbalistic doctrine of Tzimtzum, and not to be confused with Pantheism, which is heretical in Jewish belief. Charges of Pantheistic tendencies were incorrectly ascribed to Hasidism, by their its religious opponents (Mitnagdim), and by historians of the later, secularising Haskalah movement. This was partly done out of mistaken fear that Hasidism was another mystical heresy, like the Sabbatean following, from the recent past. Pantheism equates God with nature, and because it denies the transcendence of God, is opposite in tendency to Hasidism. In Jewish mystical thought, God is so unlimited, that He is also able to express Himself in the finite world of nature. This is more accurately described as a Jewish version of Panentheism-"All is within God").
This premise means that everything is an infinite revelation of God, even the smallest and most trivial thing. This basic axiom leads to four points which are the pillars of the Ba'al Shem Tov's approach:
Torah: According to the Ba'al Shem Tov the Torah is all God's "names." This means that every detail of the Torah is an infinite revelation of God, and there is no end to what we can discover from it. Just as God is infinite so is the meaning of the Torah infinite. The Ba'al Shem Tov often explains a verse or word in unconventional, and sometimes contradictory ways, only to show how all of these interpretations connect and are one. The Baal Shem Tov would even explain how all of the combinations of a word's letters connect.
Divine Providence: a) According to the Ba'al Shem Tov every event is guided by Divine Providence. Even the way a leaf blows in the wind, is part of the Divine plan. b) Every detail is essential to the perfection of the entire world. If things were not exactly this way, the entire Divine plan would not be fulfilled. c) This Divine purpose is what creates and gives life to this thing. Thus, its entire existence is Divine. Based on this, the Ba'al Shem Tov preached that one must learn a Godly lesson in everything one encounters. Ignoring His presence in any factor of existence is seen as a spiritual loss.
Inherent Value: The Ba'al Shem Tov teaches that even a simple Jew is inherently as valuable as a great sage. For all Jews are "God's children" (Deuteronomy 14:1), and a child mirrors his father's image and nature. And, just as God is eternal and his Torah and Commandments are eternal, so are his people eternal. Even the least Jew is seen as a crown that glorifies God.
Brotherly Love: The command to love another, according to the Baal Shem Tov, does not mean simply being nice. Rather, one must constantly strive to banish negative traits and cultivate good ones. This command encompasses one's entire life.
Other aspects of the Ba'al Shem Tov's approach: One should strive to permanently rectify negativity and not just suppress it. The effort in one's divine service is most important. If God wanted perfection, He would not have created us with faults and struggles. Rather, God desires our effort and struggle and challenges.
QMROn the Hasidic festival of the 19th of Kislev (traditionally described in Habad as the New Year for the Torah of Hasidus) in 1965, the 7th leader of Habad, Menachem Mendel Schneerson, gave a discourse that gave a philosophical explanation of the nature of Hasidic thought. It was later published by Kehot Publication Society in a bilingual edition as "On the essence of Chassidus". In line with the aim of Habad to articulate the inner Torah with fullest intellectual explanation, each subsequent Rebbe of Lubavitch saw their task as to spread the "wellsprings" of Hasidus to new intellectual frontiers. Each Rebbe had their own style of thought, and this discourse is an example of the depth and clarity of the last Rebbe's thought. Like the common saying found in other contexts, "standing on the shoulders of the previous generations", the explanations and emphases of each successive Rebbe was made possible by the developing teachings of their predecessors. In this discourse, the Rebbe asks what is the nature of Hasidus, and how does it differ from those parts of Torah that had been revealed until then?
To begin with, he gives four answers that have been given in earlier sources and manuscripts. Firstly, at the time of the Baal Shem Tov the Jewish world was in a state of faint, and common to the custom to arouse the soul of someone who has fainted by whispering their Jewish name in their ear, so the Baal Shem Tov, who shared his name Israel with all the Jewish people, awoke the people of Israel from this state. Secondly, commenting on the Talmudic dictum that "a Hasid (pious person) is one who goes beyond the letter of the law", Hasidic explanation of this sees in this idea an ability to serve God with true selflessness. While seeking personal spiritual revelations is commended in Torah, nonetheless, the motivation of a true Hasid is to sacrifice these goals to help another person, or serve God more sincerely. Thirdly, the main point of Hasidus is to change the nature of the emotional attributes in one's personality, including rectifying the instinctively good traits, so that they become intentionally holy ones. The fourth answer is that by explaining Kabbalistic ideas, Hasidus enables everyone to grasp Divinity, even those people without lofty souls, or who have not refined themselves.
After this the Rebbe concludes that none of these answers captures the essence of Hasidus, but are characteristic aspects. Distinguishing between essence and manifestations, the Rebbe defines the essence of Hasidus as a new revelation in Torah directly from the highest possible Kabbalisic levels, corresponding to the 5th level of the soul, its essential "Yechida" (complete "singular unity" with God). While all of Torah is believed to derive from God's essence, the 4 levels of Pardes are seen to be affected by the ever increasing concealment of Tzimtzum (contractions of the Divine "light") as they descend through the Kabbalistic system of the 4 spiritual "Worlds". Each level of Torah relates to and is affected by each World, that also correspond to the 4 lower levels of the soul. Each of the 4 levels of Pardes become limited and fixed in the defining qualities of each of their particular natures, even the most lofty and abstract mysticism of the 4th level, Sod. Only a 5th level, the Hasidic explanation of Torah, remains unresricted and unaffected by Tzimtzum, which is why it is not listed among the 4 levels (similar to the way that a person's soul is not listed in relation to their head, or their foot). While the 4th level, the Kabbalistic interpretation, is called "the soul of the Torah", as it gives the metaphysical explanation of Torah, the 5th level of Hasidus is called the "soul of the soul", or "inner soul", the true infinite essence of Torah, that reveals the Divine origin of the lower 4 levels.
To explain this, the Rebbe takes a line from Jewish liturgy (poigniantly the first words a Jew says upon awakening in the morning, "Modeh ani...", in line with the Rebbe's emphasis on action in serving God) and then proceeds to explain it on each of the 4 successive levels of Pardes interpretation. Afterwards the Rebbe gives the Hasidic meaning of Modeh ani, the 5th level of explanation. A soul has two qualities: it both transcends the body, and also descends into and permeates the body, being found from the highest faculty of the body (the head), even down into the limbs with the most simple function (the feet). In this way, the 5th explanation represents the soul in itself, as it transcends the 4 levels of Pardes. After this the Rebbe then goes on to show how now that we know the Hasidic interpretation of Modeh ani, each of the previous 4 explanations takes on a whole new meaning. We are now able to see the soul of Hasidus within each of the previous 4 levels. Each one now becomes alive and soulful, as we now understand each of the 4 levels of Pshat, Remez, Drush and Sod "in light of Hasidus". To demonstrate this the Rebbe goes through their 4 explanations, illuminating each in light of the 5th level. In each case their meaning is deepened and spiritualised. This represents the soul as it descends into and permeates the 4 levels of Pardes. To conclude, the Rebbe shows how it only the Hasidic explanation that unites each of the preceding 4 commentaries, by revealing the essential common thread that runs through them, as essence permeates all manifestations. For this reason, Hasidus is likened to olive oil, its concealment in the olive representing "secret of secrets", which analogously possesses the two qualities of an essence: it does not mix with other liquids, similar to the way that essence is separate, but permeates other substances, as essence infuses all its manifestations. This is contrasted with wine, whose concealment before pressing represents Kabbalistic "secrets", but whose ripening in the fruit improves its quality. Hasidus is above all boundaries of concealment and revelation, and so can reach and reveal the "innermost secret" soul of the most distant person to holiness.
During the demonstration of the 4th level of Kabbalah, as it is explained and lives in light of the 5th level of Hasidus, the Rebbe addresses a widely held misconception. It is commonly held that Hasidus came along to explain Kabbalah so that everyone could grasp ideas of Godliness. In this way, maybe Hasidus is a commentary on Kabbalah, and Kabbalah, with its hidden and complicated terminology mastered only by great Kabbalists, is more lofty? This accords with the misconception that Hasidus is just a part of the 4th level of Sod. Was the Baal Shem Tov merely a populariser of the Jewish mystical tradition, as many secular historians have depicted him? To answer, the Rebbe explains that just the reverse is true, Kabbalah is a commentary on Hasidus! In this discourse the Rebbe shows that Hasidus is not just part of the 4th level of Sod, but the true "Quintessetial" (the translator was excited that this word also indicates the concept of 5!) 5th level of Torah, the Divine source of the 4 manifestations. Each of the 4 levels of Pardes are limited commentaries, in their respective fashions, on the inner, infinite soul of Torah, that is only expressed in the 5th Hasidic level. The Hasidic illumination of Kabbalah is a characteristic manifestation of this essence, and is only one of the qualities of Hasidus. The reason that Kabbalah is abstract and complicated, while Hasidus is soulfull and simple, is because Hasidus alone is a reflection of the infinite simplicity of God. It takes a higher light of spirituality to unite multiplicity and division, so Hasidus derives from a higher source. As well as explaining concepts of Kabbalah, Hasidus interprets ideas from all 4 levels of Torah, in addition to the vitality with which it permeates the explanations themselves, of each of the 4 levels.
In the rest of the discourse, the Rebbe explains the relationship of Hasidus, the Yechida of Torah, to the Messiah, the general Yechida soul of the community of Israel, and to the Messianic era he inaugurates, the Yechida of Creation. He also describes the relationship of Hasidus to Halachah (Jewish ritual and ethical law), which comprises the vehicle in Judaism by which man approaches God in his daily life. The Rebbe takes an example from Jewish law to illustrate this (the Rabbinic law of temporary acquisition of property in a person's vicinity). The "revealed", legal part of Judaism has its own methodollogy and logic from first principles to final rulings, independent of additional philosophical, ethical, or mystical meanings of the law. Nonetheless, the mystical tradition in Judaism sees itself as united, inseparable, and complimentary to the revealed tradition. Some great figures in Jewish history who expounded both dimensions, state that true decisions in Jewish law should only be made in light of Kabbalistic understanding.
QMRWith the spread of Hasidism throughout Ukraine, Galicia, Poland, and Russia, divergent schools emerged within Hasidism:
Chabad: The Chabad school was formulated by Shneur Zalman of Liadi in his classic work Tanya, in which the principles of Chabad-Hasidic thought are expounded systematically and comprehensively. Chabad emphasized in-depth study of Hasidic philosophy (as opposed to mainstream Hasidic schools, who believed the study of Hasidism to be a tool and a means, rather than an end in itself). The Chabad school refers to other Hasidic schools, who emphasize the relationship to the rebbe above private service, as Chagat.
Breslov: Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, great-grandson of the Baal Shem Tov, in his general encouragement of emotional intensity, taught the importance of being joyful in the extreme at all times. He advised the practice of hitbodedut (Hebrew: התבודדות) among his followers; a form of prayer in which the Hasid seeks out solitude and speaks to God in his native tongue about his most personal matters.
Kotzk: Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk demanded of his followers uncompromising honesty. Placing truthfulness, both toward oneself and others, as the highest value, and self-deceit as the lowest, Kotzk became synonymous among Hasidim with harsh and demanding attitudes, and intolerance for hypocrisy and self-righteousness.
Satmar: Satmar is renowned for its political stance, opposing the state of Israel. It is currently the largest Hassidic group. Its strength was due to the leadership of Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum, an outstanding Hassidic master who survived the concentration camps and settled in America. Rabbi Teitelbaum's most notable battles were against Zionism and the Orthodox groups (some of them Hasidic) that recognized them. However, he was also famed for his phenomenal scholarship, piety and love for his fellow man.
QMR Eli Weissel has a book "Four hassidic masters and their struggle against melancholy"
QMRTo understand what is taking place today, we need to understand the nature of the recurring political-religious cycles called "Great Awakenings." Each lasting about 100 years, Great Awakenings consist of three phases, each about a generation long.
A cycle begins with a phase of religious revival, propelled by the tendency of new technological advances to outpace the human capacity to cope with ethical and practical complexities that those new technologies entail. The phase of religious revival is followed by one of rising political effect and reform, followed by a phase in which the new ethics and politics of the religious awakening come under increasing challenge and the political coalition promoted by the awakening goes into decline. These cycles overlap, the end of one cycle coinciding with the beginning of the next.
Phases of the Four Great Awakenings
Phase of Religious Revival Phase of Rising Political Effect Phase of Increasing Challenge to Dominance of the Political Program
First Great Awakening,
1730-1830 1730-60: Weakening of predestination doctrine; recognition that many sinners may be predestined for salvation; introduction of revival meetings emphasizing spiritual rebirth; rise of ethic of benevolence. 1760-90: Attack on British corruption; American Revolution; belief in equality of opportunity (the principle that accepted the inequality of income and other circumstances of life as natural, but held that persons of low social rank could raise themselves up—by industry, perseverance, talent, and righteous behavior—to the top of the economic and social order); establishment of egalitarianism as national ethic. 1790-1830: Breakup of revolutionary coalition.
Second Great Awakening,
1800-1920 1800-1840: Rise of belief that anyone can achieve saving grace through inner and outer struggle against sin; introduction of camp meetings and intensified levels of revivals; widespread adoption of ethic of benevolence; upsurge of millennialism. 1840-1879: Rise of single issue reform movements, each intending to contribute to making America fit for the Second Coming of Christ (these included the nativist movement, the temperance movement which was successful in prohibiting the sale of alcoholic drinks in 13 states, and the abolitionist movement that culminated in the formation of the republican party); sweeping reform agendas aimed at eliminating all barriers to equal opportunity; antislavery; attack on corruption of the South; Civil War; women's suffrage; continuation of belief in equality of opportunity. 1870-1920: Replacement of prewar evangelical leaders; Darwinian crisis; urban crisis.
Third Great Awakening,
1890-? 1890-1930: Shift from emphasis on personal to social sin; rise in belief that poverty is not a personal failure ("the wages of sin") but a societal failure that can be addressed by the state; shift to more secular interpretation of the Bible and creed. 1930-1970: Attack on corruption of big business and the right; labor reforms; civil rights and women's rights movements; belief in equality of condition (principle that equality is to be achieved primarily by government programs aimed at raising wages and transferring income from rich to poor through income taxes and finance welfare programs); rise in belief that poverty is not a personal failure but a societal failure; expansion of secondary and higher education; attack on religious and racial barriers to equal opportunity (leading to later attacks on gender-based assumptions of behavior and discrimination based on sexual orientation). 1970-?: Attack on liberal reforms; defeat of Equal Rights Amendment; rise of tax revolt; rise of Christian Coalition and other political groups of the religious Right.
Fourth, and Current, Great Awakening,
1960-? 1960-?: Return to sensuous religion and reassertion of experiential content of the Bible; rapid growth of the enthusiastic religions (including fundamentalist, Pentacostal, and Protestant charismatic denominations, "born-again" Catholics, Mormons); reassertion of concept of personal sin; stress on an ethic of individual responsibility, hard work, a simple life, and dedication to family. 1990-?: Attack on materialist corruption; rise of pro-life, pro-family, and media reform movements; campaign for more value-oriented school curriculum; expansion of tax revolt; attack on entitlements; return to a belief in equality of opportunity.
QMR For the Incans, the four cosmological Quechua principles - Water, Earth, Sun, and Moon[2] - claim Pachamama as their primordial origin, and priests sacrifice llamas, guinea pigs, and elaborate, miniature, burned garments to her.
Whitley distinguishes four or five essential types of hero cult:[16]
Oikist cults of founders.[17] Such cults arose in colonies in the Hellenic world in Magna Graecia and Sicily at the grave of the founder, the oikos. In the case of cults at the tombs of the recently heroised, it must be assumed that the identity of the occupant of the tomb was unequivocally known. Thucydides (V.11.1) gives the example of Brasidas at Amphipolis. Battus of Cyrene might also be mentioned. "Such historical examples," Whitley warns, "have clearly colored the interpretation of certain tomb cults in the Archaic period." Such Archaic sites as the "heroon" at Lefkandi and that close to the West Gate at Eretria cannot be distinguished by archaeological methods from family observances at tombs (tomb cults) and the cult of ancestors.
Cults to named heroes. A number of cult sites known in Classical times were dedicated to known heroes in the Greek and modern senses, especially of the Iliad and other episodes of the Epic Cycle. Whitley makes two points here, first that the earliest heria associate the male hero with earlier and stronger female presences, and second, that figures such as Odysseus, Agamemnon and Menelaus all have strong local connections. The cults of Oedipus at Athens and Pelops at Olympia are examples.
Cults to local heroes. Such local figures do not figure among the Panhellenic figures of epic. Examples would be Akademos and Erechtheus at Athens.
Cults at Bronze Age tombs. These are represented archaeologically by Iron Age deposits in Mycenaean tombs, not easily interpreted. Because of the gap in time between the Bronze Age collapse and the earliest votive objects, continuity appears to be broken. A sherd from above the Grave Circle A at Mycenae is simply inscribed "to the hero",[18] and Whitley suggests that the unnamed race of the Silver Age might have been invoked. In Attica, such cults are those associated with tholos tombs at Thorikos and Menidhi.
Oracular hero cults. Whitley does not address this group of local cults where an oracle developed, as in the case of Amphiaraus, who was swallowed up by a gaping crack in the earth. Minor cults accrued to some figures who died violent or unusual deaths, as in the case of the dead from the Battle of Marathon, and those struck by lightning, as in several attested cases in Magna Graecia.
The fifth is always ultra transcendent. The fourth is always different and transcendnet
QMRMany coming-of-age ceremonies are to acknowledge the passing of a girl through puberty, when she experiences menarche, or her first menstruation. The traditional Apache coming-of-age ceremony for girls is called the na'ii'ees (Sunrise Ceremony), and takes place over four days. The girls are painted with clay and pollen, which they must not wash off until the end of the rituals, which involve dancing and rituals that challenge physical strength. Girls are given teaching in aspects of sexuality, confidence, and healing ability. The girls pray in the direction of the east at dawn, and in the four cardinal directions, which represent the four stages of life. This ceremony was banned by the U.S. government for many decades; after being decriminalized by the Indian Religious Freedom Act in 1978, it has seen a revival.
According to Yoruba mythology, Olodumare, the Supreme God, ordered Obatala to create the earth but on his way he found palm wine which he drank and became intoxicated. Therefore, the younger brother of the latter, Oduduwa, took the three items of creation from him, climbed down from the heavens on a chain and threw a handful of earth on the primordial ocean, then put a cockerel on it so that it would scatter the earth, thus creating the land on which Ile Ife would be built.[2] Oduduwa planted a palm nut in a hole in the newly formed land and from there sprang a great tree with sixteen branches, a symbolic representation of the clans of the early Ife city-state. The usurpation of creation by Oduduwa gave rise to the ever lasting conflict between him and his elder brother Obatala, which is still re-enacted in the modern era by the cult groups of the two clans during the Itapa New Year festival.[3] On account of his creation of the world Oduduwa became the ancestor of the first divine king of the Yoruba, while Obatala is believed to have created the first Yoruba people out of clay. The meaning of the word "ife" in Yoruba is "expansion"; "Ile-Ife" is therefore in reference to the myth of origin "The Land of Expansion".
16 is the squares of the quadrant model
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