glossary page 81
infinity of Rembrandt's paintings: * see Endnote 60
Owing to his empathy for the human condition, he has been called one of the great prophets of civilization. Goya, one of the last of the Old Masters, said "I have had three masters: Nature, Velázquez, and Rembrandt.” Vincent van Gogh wrote, "Rembrandt goes so deep into the mysterious that he says things for which there are no words in any language.”
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Beethoven:
(1770-1827) German composer & pianist; crucial in transition from Classical to Romantic eras in music, one of the most famous & influential of all composers; great works include 9 symphonies, 5 piano concertos, 1 violin concerto, 32 piano sonatas, 16 string quartets, Mass the Missa solemnis, and opera, Fidelio. In Vienna he studied composition with Haydn & gained reputation as a virtuoso pianist; by his late 20s hearing began to deteriorate, by age 47 almost completely deaf; in1811 gave up conducting & performing in public, continued composing & many of his most admired works come from his last 15 years.
Beethoven's quartets: * see Endnote 61
these 6 string quartets, composed between 1825-26 (Opus 127 thru 135) were Beethoven's last major completed compositions; considered to be among the greatest musical compositions of all time, inspired many later composers (Stravinsky, Wagner). Performed and recorded by string quartets worldwide.
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regular polyhedrons of Euclid:
see page 66, Endnote 22
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Parthenon sculptures: * see Endnote 62
the Parthenon Marbles (aka Elgin Marbles) are a collection of marble sculptures made under the supervision of the architect & sculptor Phidias &his assistants, originally part of the temple of the Parthenon; include some 21 figures from the statuary from the east and west pediments, 15 of an original 92 metope panels depicting battles between the Lapiths & Centaurs, as well as 247 feet of the Frieze set above the interior architrave of the temple.
Nirvana of Budda:
literally means "blown out", as in an oil lamp most commonly associated with Buddhism, and represents its ultimate state of soteriological release and liberation from rebirths; in the Buddhist context, nirvana refers to realization of non-self and emptiness, marking the end of rebirth by stilling the fires that keep the process of rebirth going; a term for liberation.
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Sesostris:
(aka Senusret III) pharaoh of Egypt ruled 1878-1839 BC; 5th king of 12th dynasty of Middle Kingdom; period of great power & prosperity, most powerful Egyptian ruler of the dynasty. He expanded south into Nubia (4 major campaigns, erected large fortress on Nile & built a navigable canal through the first cataract; secured the southern frontier. His campaigns led to peace & economic prosperity, reduced the power of regional rulers, led to a revival in craft-work, trade & urban development; deified during their own lifetime, a rare privilege.
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Justinian I:
(482-565 AD), Byzantine (E. Roman) emperor 527-565 AD; was able to re-claim N. Africa, Rome, Italy & Iberia, re-establishing control over W. Mediterranean. This increased annual revenue; he also rewrote Roman law (Corpus Juris Civilis) & under him Byzantine culture prospered, his building program led to Hagia Sophia. He simplified administration; took measures to counter corruption in the provinces, made tax collection more efficient by using professionals, destroying traditional structures of provincial life, weakening autonomy of the Greek town councils. Christian orthodoxy threatened by Monophysitism. He continued his father’s polices, condemned the Monophysites as heretics & imposed religious unity on his subjects, forcing them to accept doctrinal compromises. Like his re-unification of the Empire this was unsuccessful as it satisfied no one.
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Louis XIV:
Aeschylus, God idea of: * see Endnote 63
Zeus as the supreme ruler of the universe; other deities his subordinates. Not a capricious ruler swayed by casual passions (like the Zeus of Homer). To act with injustice is impossible to him; he is "constrained" never to assist transgressors & even he must submit to the universal law of justice. The instruments of this law are the Furies (vengeance personified); they pursue criminals & crush them. However they are commanded by Zeus. Justice is the virgin daughter of Zeus; his role is to govern the world in accordance with that law of Justice (ordained by Fate) as the established order of the universe.
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Plotinus, God idea of: * see Endnote 64
God is completely beyond man’s description; his philosophy has 3 basic principles called: ‘the One’ (or, equivalently, ‘the Good’), Intellect, and Soul. The One is the absolutely simple first principle of all. It is both ‘self-caused’ and the cause of being for everything else in the universe. The One or the Good, owing to its simplicity, is indescribable directly. We can only grasp it indirectly by deducing what it is not.
Dante, God idea of : * see Endnote 65
God is lifted from Biblical history. The perfection of God’s justice is Dante’s main theme in the Divine Comedy.. The inscription over the gates of Hell in Canto III explicitly states that God was moved to create Hell by Justice. Hell exists to punish sin, and the suitability of Hell’s specific punishments testify to the divine perfection that all sin violates. He declares that evil is evil simply because it contradicts God’s will, and God’s will does not need further justification.
world embracing spatial energy of modern technics:
In Spengler’s world this is possibly a reference to railways or the telegraph, shrinking the world from a vast universe towards the global village we know today.
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Galileo:
see Introduction page 7