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Talisman (typeface)
A talisman is any object ascribed with religious or magical powers intended to protect, heal, or harm individuals for whom they are made. Talismans are often portable objects carried on someone in a variety of ways, but can also be installed permanently in architecture. Talismans are closely linked with amulets, fulfilling many of the same roles, but a key difference is in their functions. An amulet protects a person or possession against evil forces while a talisman provides good fortune. Talismans have been used in many civilizations throughout history, with connections to astrological, scientific, and religious practices; but the theory around preparation and use has changed in some cultures with more recent, new age, talismanic theory. Talismans are used for a wide array of functions, such as: the personal protection of the wearer, loved ones or belongings, aiding in fertility, and helping crop production. Etymology The word ''talisman'' comes from French , via Arabic (, p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Evil Eye
The evil eye is a supernatural belief in a curse brought about by a malevolent glaring, glare, usually inspired by envy. Amulets to Apotropaic, protect against it have been found dating to around 5,000 years ago. It is found in many cultures in the Mediterranean region, the Balkans, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, South Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and Latin America, with such cultures often believing that receiving the evil eye will cause misfortune or injury, while others believe it to be a kind of supernatural force that casts or reflects a malevolent gaze back upon those who wish harm upon others (especially innocents). The idea also appears multiple times in rabbinic literature, Jewish rabbinic literature. Different cultures have pursued measures to protect against the evil eye. Some of the most famous talismans against the evil eye include the Nazar (amulet), nazar amulet, itself a representation of an eye, and the hamsa, a hand-shaped amulet. Older iterati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Janissary
A janissary (, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops. They were the first modern standing army, and perhaps the first infantry force in the world to be equipped with firearms, adopted during the reign of Murad II (r. 1421–1444, 1446–1451). The corps was established under either Orhan or Murad I, and dismantled by Mahmud II in 1826. Janissaries began as elite corps made up through the ''devşirme'' system of Ghilman, child levy enslavement, by which Ethnic groups in Europe, indigenous European Christians, Christian boys, chiefly from the Balkans, were taken, levied, subjected to forced circumcision and Forced conversion#Islam, forced conversion to Islam, and incorporated into the Ottoman army in the 15th–19th centuries, Ottoman army. They became famed for internal cohesion cemented by strict discipline and order. Unlike typical History of slavery in the Muslim world, slaves, they were paid regular salaries. Forbidden ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ottoman Flags
The Ottoman Empire used various flags and naval ensigns during its history. The crescent and star came into use in the second half of the 18th century. A ' (decree) from 1793 required that the ships of the Ottoman Navy The Ottoman Navy () or the Imperial Navy (), also known as the Ottoman Fleet, was the naval warfare arm of the Ottoman Empire. It was established after the Ottomans first reached the sea in 1323 by capturing Praenetos (later called Karamürsel ... were to use a red flag with the star and crescent in white. In 1844, a version of this flag, with a five-pointed star, was officially adopted as the Ottoman national flag. The decision to adopt a national flag was part of the ''Tanzimat'' reforms which aimed to modernize the Ottoman state in line with the laws and norms of contemporary European states and institutions. The star and crescent design later became a common element in the national flags of Ottoman successor states in the 20th century. The current flag of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Secretum Secretorum
The or (Latin, 'Secret of secrets'), also known as the (), is a treatise which purports to be a letter from Aristotle to his student Alexander the Great on an encyclopedic range of topics, including statecraft, ethics, physiognomy, Muslim views on astrology, astrology, Alchemy and chemistry in medieval Islam, alchemy, magic (paranormal), magic, and medicine. The earliest extant editions claim to be based on a 9th-century Arabic translation of a Syriac language, Syriac translation of the lost Ancient Greek language, Greek original. It is a Pseudo-Aristotle, pseudo-Aristotelian work. Modern scholarship finds it likely to have been written in the 10th century in Arabic. Latin translations of the 12th century, Translated into Latin in the mid-12th century, it was influential among European intellectuals during the High Middle Ages. Origin The origin of the treatise remains uncertain. The Arabic edition claims to be a translation from Greek by 9th-century scholar Yahya Ibn al-Ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hermes Trismegistus
Hermes Trismegistus (from , "Hermes the Thrice-Greatest") is a legendary Hellenistic period figure that originated as a syncretic combination of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth.A survey of the literary and archaeological evidence for the background of Hermes Trismegistus as the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth may be found in He is the purported author of the ''Hermetica'', a widely diverse series of ancient and medieval pseudepigraphica that laid the basis of various philosophical systems known as Hermeticism. The wisdom attributed to this figure in antiquity combined a knowledge of both the material and the spiritual world, which rendered the writings attributed to him of great relevance to those who were interested in the interrelationship between the material and the divine. The figure of Hermes Trismegistus can also be found in both Muslim and Baháʼí writings. In those traditions, Hermes Trismegistus has been associated with the prophet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hermetica
The ''Hermetica'' are texts attributed to the legendary Hellenistic figure Hermes Trismegistus, a syncretic combination of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. These texts may vary widely in content and purpose, but by modern convention are usually subdivided into two main categories, the "technical" and "religio-philosophical" ''Hermetica''. The category of "technical" ''Hermetica'' encompasses a broad variety of treatises dealing with astrology, medicine and pharmacology, alchemy, and magic, the oldest of which were written in Greek and may go back as far as the second or third century BCE. Many of the texts belonging in this category were later translated into Arabic and Latin, often being extensively revised and expanded throughout the centuries. Some of them were also originally written in Arabic, though in many cases their status as an original work or translation remains unclear. These Arabic and Latin Hermetic texts were widely copied throughout the Mid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pseudo-Aristotelian Hermetica
The ''Hermetica'' are texts attributed to the legendary Hellenistic figure Hermes Trismegistus, a syncretic combination of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. These texts may vary widely in content and purpose, but by modern convention are usually subdivided into two main categories, the "technical" and "religio-philosophical" ''Hermetica''. The category of "technical" ''Hermetica'' encompasses a broad variety of treatises dealing with astrology, medicine and pharmacology, alchemy, and magic, the oldest of which were written in Greek and may go back as far as the second or third century BCE. Many of the texts belonging in this category were later translated into Arabic and Latin, often being extensively revised and expanded throughout the centuries. Some of them were also originally written in Arabic, though in many cases their status as an original work or translation remains unclear. These Arabic and Latin Hermetic texts were widely copied throughout the Middle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barakah
In Islam, ''Barakah'' or ''Baraka'' ( "blessing") is a blessing power, a kind of continuity of spiritual presence and revelation that begins with God and flows through that and those closest to God. The Quran is said to be charged with ''barakah'', and God can bestow prophets and saints with ''barakah''. Especially Muhammad and his descendants are said to be especially endowed with it. These special people can transfer their ''barakah'' to ordinary people, both while being dead or alive. Sacred places are said to contain ''barakah'' and ward off evil spiritual forces, thus monasteries and Sufi temples are often visited for protection against demonic beings. As a blessing force, barakah is also a force of creation and fertility, causing cereals to miraculously multiply.Colin, G.S. (2012). Baraka. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_1216 See also * Mana * Numen Numen (plural numina) i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Islam And Magic
Belief and practice in magic in Islam is "widespread and pervasive" and a "vital element of everyday life and practice", both historically and currently in Islamic culture. Kruk, "Harry Potter in the Gulf", ''BJMES'', May 2005: p.48 Magic range from talisman inscribed with Divine names of God, Quranic verses, and Arabic letters, and divination, to the performance of miracles and sorcery. Most Muslims also believe in a form of divine blessing called ''barakah''. Popular forms of talisman include the construction of Magic squares and Talismanic shirts, believed to invoke divine favor by inscribing God's names. While miracles, considered to be a gift from God, are approved, the practise of black magic (''siḥr)'' is prohibited. Other forms of magic intersect with what might be perceived as science, such as the prediction of the course of the planets or weather. Licit forms of magic call upon God, the angels, prophets, and saints, while illicit magic is believed to call upon evil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quran
The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides its religious significance, it is widely regarded as the finest work in Arabic literature, and has significantly influenced the Arabic, Arabic language. It is the object of a modern field of academic research known as Quranic studies. Muslims believe the Quran was orally revealed by God to the final Islamic Prophets and messengers in Islam, prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad through the Angel#Islam, angel Gabriel#Islam, Gabriel incrementally over a period of some 23 years, beginning on the Night of Power, Laylat al-Qadr, when Muhammad was 40, and concluding in 632, the year of his death. Muslims regard the Quran as Muhammad's most important Islamic view of miracles, miracle, a proof of his prophet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gilbertus Anglicus
Gilbertus Anglicus (or Gilbert of England, also known as ''Gilbertinus''; c. 1180 – c. 1250) was a medieval English physician. He is known chiefly for his encyclopedic work, the ''Compendium of Medicine'' (''Compendium Medicinæ''), most probably written between 1230 and 1250. This medical treatise was an attempt at a comprehensive overview of the best practice in pharmacology, medicine, and surgery at the time. His medical works, alongside those of John of Gaddesden, "formed part of the core curriculum that underpinned the practice of medicine for the next 400 years". Life Little is securely known of the detail of the life of Gilbert. Born about 1180, he received his early education in England before leaving for Europe. It is known that he studied at Western Europe's first and foremost school of medicine, the Schola Medica Salernitana at Salerno, Italy, most probably under the famed surgeon, Roger of Parma. He returned to England to serve under Archbishop Hugo Walter, but l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
