Gluck (his opera Armida):

opera by Gluck, libretto by Philippe Quinault, first performed 1777 in Paris, the composer's own favourite.  The story is about the First Crusade, when Armide ensnares her enemy the Christian knight Renaud with her magic spells. She raises her dagger to kill him, but instead falls in love with him; she casts a spell to make him love her in return.  When she returns to her castle, she cannot bear that Renaud's love is false (the work of her enchantment) & calls on the Goddess of Hate to restore her hate for him.  Yet she cannot escape from her feelings of love & the Goddess condemns her to eternal love.  Before she can return to Renaud, 2 of his fellows break Armide's spell.  The knight escapes & Armide is left enraged, despairing & hopeless.

 

Pergamene sculptures: *

See Chapter II page 85, Chpater VI page 205

 

Ling-yan-si (sculptured heads of the Saints): * see EndNote<A>

Lingyin Temple (Temple of the Soul's Retreat) Buddhist temple located NW of Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China; one of the largest & wealthiest temples in China, containing numerous pagodas & grottoes.  According to tradition, it was founded in 328 AD during the Eastern Jin dynasty (265–420) by an Indian monk, named Huili in Chinese.  The entrance of the temple is the Hall of the Four Heavenly Kings, a double-eaved building.  The principal statue is the Maitreya Buddha (the Laughing Buddha). At the back, is the Skanda Buddha, dating from the Southern Song Dynasty; at 800 years old it is the oldest and most important statue in the temple. Arranged along the left and right are the Four Heavenly Kings.  These statues are imposing, with impressive size & majesty; they represent the 4 Buddhist gods, each watching 1 cardinal direction in the world.  In Chinese Mythology, they are known collectively as "Four Great Heavenly Kings”. 

 

Nietzsche (on Classical tendency): * see EndNote <B>

Spengler dismisses Nietzsche because the latter identifies the Greeks with his Master Morality, which, as opposed to the Judeo Christian slave morality (full of its stuffy ethics, guilt) is fully alive, passionate & with great energy.  For Spengler the essence of the Greco-Roman Civilization (Apollonian) was its reflection of the Prime Symbol, the nude statue, not some sort  of nobility endowed with the Master  morality

 

perfervid:

very fervent; extremely ardent; impassioned

 

apotheosis:

the ideal example; epitome; quintessence

 

circum-space:

circum is a prefix with the meaning “round about, around,” found in verbs that involve the general senses “to encompass or surround” (circumference, the perimeter) or “to go around” by the means specified by the verb (circumnavigate- go around by sailing); on this pattern it forms adjectives with the meaning “surrounding” that which is named by the stem (circumpolar- around or near the Pole).  In the context of its usage by Spengler, it means surrounding space.