The following is an excerpt from Russia: Myths and Realities, written by Rodric Braithwaite and published by Pegasus Books.

NATION, MYTH, HISTORY

Russia is a country with an unpredictable past. Popular Russian saying

Everyone has a national narrative, constructed from fact, fact misremembered and myth. People tell themselves stories about their past to give some meaning to the confusions of their present. They rewrite their stories from generation to generation to adapt them to new realities. They omit, forget or wholly reinvent episodes that are uncomfortable or disgraceful.

These stories have deep roots. They feed our patriotism. They help us understand who we are, where we come from, where we belong. Our rulers believe them no less than we do. They hold us together in a Nation and inspire us to sacrifice our lives in its name.

The British have their Island Story of undeviating progress from Magna Carta towards power, freedom and democracy, punctuated by shining victories over the French: Winston Churchill wrote it up in his grandiloquent A History of the English-Speaking Peoples. The English acquired, exploited and then lost three empires in 600 years. The descendants of their imperial subjects think of them as greedy, brutal, devious and hypocritical. That is not at all how they think of themselves.

But the Nation is a slippery thing. Nations are like amoebas. They emerge from the depths of history. They wriggle around. They split by binary fission, recombine in different configurations, absorb their neighbours or are absorbed by them, and then disappear. War, politics, dynastic marriage, popular referendums shift provinces from one side of a frontier to the other. Ordinary people can be born in one country, grow up in another and die in a third, all without leaving their home town. Ask a Frenchman who was born in Alsace-Lorraine in 1869. Ask an Austrian Jew who was born on the border of Slovakia and Hungary in 1917. Ask a Pole who was born before the Second World War in what is now the Ukrainian city of Lviv, which since its foundation as Levhorod in the thirteenth century has been known to its Polish, Austrian, German and Russian rulers as Lww, Lemberg and Lvov.

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Few of the states in todays Europe existed before the First World War. When Columbus discovered America, Germany, Italy, Russia and even France and Britain were still fragmented and the Polish-Lithuanian Union was on the way to becoming the largest state in Europe.

The idea of Europe is itself largely an artificial construction, an attempt to bring under one roof a collection of countries at the western end of the Euro-Asian land mass, each very different from the others, ranging from Iceland to Romania, from Norway to Greece, from Spain to Estonia, loosely bound together by a tradition of Christianity and a murderous record of domestic persecution, bloody rebellion and violent religious conflict at home, endless war for power and loot, genocide, slavery and imperial brutality abroad.

By those depressing standards Russians have as good a claim to be European as anyone else. Partly because of its huge extent eastwards into Asia, both Russians and foreigners nevertheless wonder whether Russia is part of Europe at all. Many of their immediate neighbours consider them Asiatic barbarians, and point angrily to the sufferings that the Russians have inflicted on them over the centuries. Napoleon was right, they think, when he allegedly said, Scratch a Russian and youll find a Tartar. More than a thousand years ago a people arose on the territory of todays Russia whose origins are disputed. They adopted the Orthodox version of Christianity from Byzantium, thus irrevocably distinguishing themselves from those elsewhere in Europe who chose Roman Catholicism. They developed their own Slavonic language. They created Kievan Rus, which for a while was the largest and one of the most sophisticated, if also one of the most ramshackle, states in Europe. It is from here that todays Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians trace their origins.

But Kievan Rus was invaded and destroyed in the thirteenth century by the Mongols. Its splintered fragments were reassembled over the following centuries under the name of Muscovy by the hitherto insignificant northern city of Moscow. The new state was struck down by internal strife, economic disaster and Polish invasion. It recovered, and Peter the Great and his successors transformed it into an imperial Great Power, a dominant force in European politics. In the nineteenth century Russia helped to define the nature of modern European culture.

Russias existence was again seriously challenged by Napoleon, by the Germans and as a result of the wounds the Russians inflicted on themselves in the twentieth century. Stalin put Russia back on the map, transformed the economy and won the war against Germany, all at a horrendous human cost. Then in 1991 the empire flew apart. Russia collapsed again into poverty, incoherence and international irrelevance. For many Russians it was Vladimir Putin, whom they elected president in 2000, who saved them from unbearable humiliation and restored Russia to something like its rightful place in the world.

Edward Gibbon said that History is little more than the register of the crimes, follies and misfortunes of mankind. Russians, like the rest of us, prefer to believe that their history has progressed in a straight and positive line. They explain away troubling events such as the brutal reigns of Ivan the Terrible or Stalin as necessary stages on the path to greatness.

The Russians are fascinating, ingenious, creative, sentimental, warm-hearted, generous, obstinately courageous, endlessly tough, often devious, brutal and ruthless. Ordinary Russians firmly believe that they are warmer-hearted than others, more loyal to their friends, more willing to sacrifice themselves for the common good, more devoted to the fundamental truths of life. They give the credit to the Russian soul, as broad and all-embracing as the Russian land itself. Their passionate sense of Russias greatness is paradoxically undermined by an underlying and corrosive pessimism. And it is tempered by resentment that their country is insufficiently understood and respected by foreigners.

Russian reality is coloured by the disconcerting and deeply rooted phenomenon of vranyo. This is akin to the Irish blarney, but lacks the overtone of roguish charm. Individuals, officials, governments tell lies if they believe it serves their interests, or those of their bosses, their organization or the state. They were doing it in the sixteenth century, when English traders advised their colleagues to deal with Russians only in writing, For they bee subtill people, and do not alwaies speake the trueth, and think other men to be like themselves. They are doing it today. They are little concerned if their interlocutor is aware that they are lying, though that does not stop Russian governments from punishing those who challenge their veracity. Ordinary Russians may find it easier to believe what their government says. But there are limits. Disgust with the entangling lie drives many of the characters in Dostoevskys novels to extravagant confession. The systematic mendacity of Soviet officials and ideologists was a constant theme of dissident writers such as Alexander Solzhenistyn.

As repugnance grew among ordinary people too, it helped to bring down the Soviet regime.

Churchill remarked that Russia is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. That has become an excuse for intellectual laziness. But understanding Russia is a challenge, and you have to start by trying to disentangle the facts from the myths created both by the Russians themselves and by those who dislike them. The Encyclopdia Britannica described Russia in 1782 as a very large and powerful kingdom of Europe, governed by a complete despotism and inhabited by vicious and drunken savages. The Marquis de Custine, a French reactionary deeply at odds with his own society, visited Russia briefly in 1839. The book he wrote, La Russie en 1839, was highly intelligent, perceptive, witty, biased and profoundly superficial. He saw little of Russian society apart from the aristocracy, who he concluded had just enough of the gloss of European civilization to be spoiled as savages but not enough to become cultivated. They were like trained bears who made you long for the wild ones. Custines book was compulsory reading in the US embassy in Moscow in the 1960s. It reflects the attitudes of many foreign observers today. It is not the best starting point for any attempt to understand the country.

Some argue that there was never anything as coherent as a Russian national state. Most Russians, though, seem to have little doubt. Whatever is meant by a nation, they believe that theirs is exceptional, chosen by God or History to bring enlightenment to a benighted world. This Messianic sense of mission was born out of Orthodoxy in medieval Muscovy and has survived ever since. It was promoted by Dostoevsky and a host of others in the nineteenth century. In the twentieth century the Bolsheviks shared the sense of mission, although for them God was replaced by History working its way through the instrument of Communism. But their Brave New World began to look suspiciously like the old Russian empire under another name.

Russians and those who wish them well can be forgiven for despairing at the disasters they so regularly inflict on others and on themselves. After the Soviet collapse they returned to the idea that modern Russia had an exclusive claim to the inheritance of the Orthodox state of Kievan Rus. Vladimir Putin was consumed by the idea that our great common misfortune and tragedy was the division since 1991 between Russia and Ukraine, between the parts of what he called essentially the same historical and spiritual space. The obsession fueled his invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

*

A fascination with Russia and its people has occupied me for much of my life. I was there as the Soviet Union collapsed. That colours some of the judgements that follow in this short and, I hope, measured history.

Even before the Berlin Wall came down it seemed as if Ukraines desire for independence might trigger the disintegration of the Soviet Union. By the early 1990s neither a war between Russia and Ukraine nor the possibility that the Russian democratic experiment would fail as disastrously as Germanys Weimar Republic seemed beyond imagination.

Some of my other judgements were sadly wrong. Russia has not yet lost its imperial itch. Putins brutal invasion of Ukraine has postponed for many decades the prospect that Russia will become the modern democratic state at peace with its neighbors which so many courageous Russians had fought so hard to create.

But no people should ever be written off as beyond redemption. I hang on to the golden image of the Firebird, which flits through the dark forests of Russian folklore to symbolize the hope that Russia will see better days.

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Why Russia sees itself as much more than just a nation - Big Think

With the never-ending news of schools banning books, one has to ask about the history and effectiveness of banned books. Fortunately, the Duke Forever Learning Institute hosted a seminar on the history of banned books in late September and provided examples that showed the ineffectiveness of banned books throughout time.

There was one particular story, however, that caught my eye, and that was the retelling of the history behind a banned book written by a man named Gottschalk.Clare Woods, an associate professor of Classical Studies at Duke, delineated the narrative of Gottschalks life from birth to prisoner.

Gottschalk was born to an aristocratic family around 803 AD and started his academic career when he moved into Fulder, a monastery, to become a monk. However, in 829 AD, Gottschalk left Fulder for reasons based either on the loss of his older brother or the enlightenment he received from the monastery he attended while studying abroad.

Upon leaving Fulder, Gottschalk studied at the monasteries of Corby and then moved to northern Italy after he received his orientation as a priest. Gottschalk was unusual because monks tended not to move around that much, and monks also tended not to speak about their studies on heretical doctrine. Unfortunately for Gottschalk, he ignored the criticisms from other monks and instead grew confident in his studies to the point where he wrote a book about them.

While receiving hate for his ideas from multiple people, one man from Gottschalks past was truly adamant about having Gottschalk punished. This man was named Rabbanis, and he was accused by Gottschalk of coercing Gottschalks earlier career as a monk. From that, and with Gottschalk leaving the Fulder, Rabbanis developed a personal vendetta against Gottschalk.

Gottschalk, the confident man he was, decided to defend himself at a Synod in Mainz, but it proved unsuccessful because he was condemned by the Synod and banned from the Kingdom of Louis. From there on, things did not improve for Gottschalk because, in the following year, he was brought to a second Synod that was attended by King Charles, who was the brother of King Louis the German. By the end of this Synod, Gottschalk was stripped of his priesthood, sentenced to silence, and imprisoned.

However, even with the punishments Gottschalk personally received and his books being burned, his books were still preserved and influential on others.

This influence seen with Gottschalks books after being banned was not an anomaly because that was seen with all banned books throughout history.

Another example was given by Lauren Ginsberg, an associate professor of classical studies, who presented Permussius Cordis, an author who lived under the Roman emperor Tiberius in the 1st century AD.

His story ended in tragedy since his books were included in a mass book burning and he was sentenced to death. However, his book still was able to influence the Roman population due to his daughter Marshas vigilance in keeping her fathers book alive.

While I only provided two examples, this pattern of books withstanding their ban is throughout time, and it is being repeated in the present. Across this country, book banning is back in style. In 2018, there were only 347 books that schools formally challenged, but in 2021 it became 1,500.

While this does put light on our current education system in this country, this is simply a gesture. It does make us think about what children will be learning in schools, but because the books are banned in schools does not mean the information within those books will not reach their target demographic. As seen in history, knowledge always finds a way of spreading, but of course, that is dependent on those who want to expand that knowledge.

At the end of this article, I hope you are reassured that seeing a banned book does not mean it is forever silenced. Instead, I hope that by reading this, you understand that you have all the power to ensure that the words within a book can withstand anything, including time.

Post by Jakaiyah Franklin, Class of 2025

Citation: Freedman, Samuel G. A Display of Banned or Censored Books at a Bookstore Last October. Over a Recent 9 Month Period More than 1,500 Books Have Been Banned in Schools, Most Featuring Nonwhite Protagonists, Dealing with Racism, or Addressing the LGBTQ Experience. Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2022, https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2022-06-27/book-bans-critical-race-theory-wisconsin. Accessed 10 Oct. 2022.

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Banned Books Then and Now - Research Blog - Duke University

This circa Fourteenth Century Korean large gilt-bronze figure of a bodhisattva achieved enlightenment at $441,000 in the Dharma & Tantra auction.

NEW YORK CITY With a combination of five live and online sales that took place September 20-27, Sothebys Asia Week realized a total of $19,544,742. Kicking off the week on September 20 was Power/Conquest: The Forging of Empires, which achieved a total of $7,090,524. The top price of the sale was $1,083,600, realized for the Yi Yu Gui, Western Zhou dynasty, King Zhao period, probably circa 980 BCE, which easily exceeded its $600/800,000 estimate.

That same day, in Dharma & Tantra, a large gilt-bronze figure of a bodhisattva, Korean, circa Fourteenth Century, sold within estimate for $441,000. It was the top lot in a sale that achieved a total of $2,816,730.The firms semiannual sale of Important Chinese Art on September 21, which made $7,394,562, was led at $756,000 by a superbly carved white jade dragon vase, Qing dynasty, Qianlong period, which came in slightly below its $800,000-$1.2 million estimate.

Exceeding expectations, however, was a white-glazed Moon Jar from the Joseon dynasty, late Seventeenth or early Eighteenth Century. It made $403,200 against an estimate of $180/250,000 and was the high water mark in the firms Sublime Beauty: Korean Ceramics from a Private Collection auction on September 22 that brought $1,272,600.

Closing out Asia with an online sale titled China / 5000 Years, a Ming-style blue and white dragon moonflask, Qing dynasty, roared to $47,880, a substantial rise from its $10/15,000 estimate. The sale, which opened September 16, closed September 27 with a total of $970,326.

Prices quoted include the buyers premium as reported by the auction house. For information, http://www.sothebys.com.

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Sotheby's Asia Week Sales Total $19.5 Million - Antiques And The Arts Weekly - Antiques and the Arts Online

Do you know that Bihar has many attractions beyond the popular destinations such as Bodhgaya and Nalanda? Yes, you read it right. Bihar, which was once considered the centre of political and cultural power and a haven of learning, has some must-visit hills that will surely impress the traveller in you. Here's a look at five of them.

Rajgir Hills

Located in the Nalanda district, Rajgir is known for its picturesque views and as a historical and religious centre for Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains. It is surrounded by five hills: Ratnagiri, Vipulachal, Vaibhavagiri, Songiri and Udaygiri. These hills are mainly associated with the life of the Buddha, who is believed to have taught there. The place also has a single-person ropeway that is said to be the oldest in the country. It runs at the top of Ratnagiri Hill and leads to the Vishwa Shanti Stupa and the Makhdoom Kund. Earlier this year, a zoo safari, a transparent glass bridge, and a new gondola ropeway were inaugurated to boost tourism at Rajgir.

How to reach: Private and state-run buses connect Rajgir to Patna, Gaya, Nalanda, etc.

Best time to visit: October-March

Bateshwar HillsSituated in the Bhagalpur district, the Bateshwar Hills are located 6km south of the town of Kursela. The main attraction here is the Bateshwarnath Temple, which was constructed in the 7th century, and is now a protected site by the Archaeological Survey of India. Also, since the Ganga flows northward here, the temple is an important pilgrimage site for Hindus.

How to reach: Public transport is available from Kahalgaon, 10km from Bateshwar Hills.

Best time to visit: July-August and October-March

Brahmajuni HillYou can witness some historic caves at the Brahmajuni Hills, where you can explore the alluring carvings engraved on the stone walls. Also, according to legend, this is the place where Buddha delivered his fire sermon to a thousand priests who were his followers and wanted to achieve enlightenment. You will have to climb a thousand stone steps to reach the top of the hill, where you can get a magnificent look at the city of Gaya.

How to reach: Take a public or private ride from the town of Gaya, which is 4km away from Brahmajuni Hill.

Best time to visit: October-March

PragbodhiPragbodhi (meaning before enlightenment) is located around 7km from Bodh Gaya. It is believed that Lord Buddha spent seven years in a cave on this hill before he attained enlightenment. A brief trek to the top of the hill offers spectacular views of the land around and the ruins of a few stupas.

How to reach: You can take a taxi or a cab to Pragbodhi. The trip will take you about one hour.

Best time to visit: October-March

Gurpa Hill

A Buddhist pilgrimage site, Gurpa Hill is located 25km northeast of Bodh Gaya. The mountain is said to be the site where Buddha's disciple Mahakasyapa died while waiting for the future Buddha, Maitreya, to arrive on earth. It is also considered one of the tallest peaks in the Gangetic plains. At the top of the mountain are a stupa and a Buddhist temple.

How to reach: Book a local cab, taxi or bus to get to Gurpa Peak, located 48 Km from the city of Gaya.

Best time to visit: October-March

Continued here:
Hills You Should Head To The Next Time You Are In Bihar - Outlook India

Elon Musk has been forthcoming about psychedelic drugs and is not shy about discussing them and their benefits. Hes also been supportive of cannabis legalization.

The billionaire shared a chart with a friend,which showedMDMA and psychedelic mushrooms are healthier than alcohol use, according to the friendwho toldThe New York Times.

The Times, reportedThe Insider,then spoke with over 40 people who have spent time with Musk over the past 15 years, many of whom signed non-disclosure agreements or similarin order to attend parties with Musk. The Times also reported that for the past 20 years, Musk has attended nearly every Burning Man festival,usually with his younger brotherKimbal Musk and a friend he met there.

"I have been with him on mild exploratory journeys," said David Marglin, a Bay Area lawyer who met Musk at Burning Man where they struck up a 20-year friendship. "And he appreciates the value of those journeys. Nothing out of control or wild, but it's all night, and there's dancing and revelry."

In the past, theTeslaTSLACEOhas expressed supportfor psychedelics and ketamine. Earlier this year,he was part of aconversation between two Twitter users, one of whom, Netscape co-founderMarc Andreessenreferredto a2016 New York Times featureabout Adderall andwondered whether our present society was caused by social media. I'm wondering whether Adderall plus ubiquitous Google searches have bigger effects.

Musk responded, "I've talked to many more people who were helped by psychedelics & ketamine than SSRIs & amphetamines."

More recently, the billionaire said in aninterview with Full Send Podcastthat he thinks psychedelics can be "pretty helpful" for PTSD and depression. Musk alsonotedhe and the "whole of SpaceX" had been subjected to random drug tests for a year after he appeared on a podcast with Joe Rogan in which he smoked weed.

Musk is far not the only successfultech CEO who has showninterest in psychedelics. Apple founder Steve Jobs also talked aboutmicrodosingpsychedelics drugs, such as LSD or psilocybin mushrooms in order to promote creativity. Jobs also spent time inIndia seeking enlightenment and studying Zen Buddhism.

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Elon Musk's 'Exploratory Journeys' And Charts Explaining Benefits Of Psychedelics Over Alcohol - Tesla (N - Benzinga

Steelers 2022 is ongoing and we here at BTSC, and our podcast platform, are here with you every step of the way. In the past we have given you the podcasts in individual articles on the BTSC website, but weve decided to go with a Podcast Roundup article which has the latest three podcasts for your enjoyment. The reasoning behind this is to take up less space on the site for the great written content we have at BTSC.

With that being said or typed, enjoy the shows below with a brief description of each show:

Mike Tomlin wont sugarcoat it. I guess we shouldnt either. The Steelers got smashed, and some fans are in very unfamiliar territory. So, BTSC podcast producer Bryan Anthony Davis decided to make no apologies and share his black-and-gold brand of enlightenment. Join BAD preaching his own gospel of the hypocycloids on the new show, BAD Language.

The Steelers lost...again. This time, it was the worst defeat for the franchise in 33 years. So now that that ugly debacle against the Bills is out of the way, and now that the team has dropped to 1-4 to start the 2022 campaign, you get to choose your Steelers narrative for whats wrong and what needs to change moving forward. Join Bryan Anthony Davis, Shannon White and Tony Defeo for this edition of the Steelers Hangover!

Check out the rundown of the show:

The Steelers shuffled off to Buffalo and stumbled back to the Steel City as 38-3 losers. What did it look like stat wise? Thank goodness for the Stat Geek to break it all dahn. This is just one of the topics that will be discussed by Dave Schofield on the Thursday episode of the AM podcast lineup, The Steelers Stat Geek. Join BTSCs Editor as he pulls out the Steelers slide rule and geeks out only like he can.

Check out the rundown of the show:

Be sure to check out this and all episodes on the following platforms:

Apple Users: CLICK HERE

Spotify: CLICK HERE

Google Play: CLICK HERE

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All the latest of the BTSC family of Pittsburgh Steelers podcasts - Behind The Steel Curtain

Wills, probate, trusts, tax, estate planning, inheritance, LPAs, regulation, legislation, caselaw

These are not topics you will find covered in your local newspaper and they are seldom found in your national newspaper, either.

But thats not all. Views and opinions on such niche topics, mental health and wellbeing, technological developments affecting the law, industry developments and updates not to mention awards ceremonies.

News on all of the above finds its home at Todays Wills and Probate, and has now done so for eight years.

Eight years or 2,921 days that has seen 5,810 articles distributed in 417 weekly newsletters, the launch of Women in Wills, and four (soon to be five) national award ceremonies along the way for good measure.

It is our absolute privilege to provide the information and enlightenment to practitioners that is so crucial to their practice, and therefore to the clients to whom their service is indispensable.

Yet, this has not been achieved alone.

319 contributors from around the industry including solicitors, barristers, will writers, suppliers, regulators, ombudsmen, representative bodies, and everything in between have taken the time out of their busy schedules to author a guest piece for the site.

Weve been fortunate enough to partner with nearly 50 businesses over the years who have helped to ensure that Todays Wills and Probate remains a free to subscribe publication; some of whom have been with us since pretty much day 1! And with our continued growth, theres no doubting that Todays Wills and Probate is theplace to come to open up a dialogue with our community of wills and probate professionals.

Last but most definitely not least, thousands of practitioners head to their inbox every Friday and read what we have to say about the latest goings on in their industry. Their attention and support has never faded and only continues to grow.

The first article on the site set out a simple aim: To keep wills and probate professionals up to date with everything thats happening within the industry. With plenty of help, were getting there Thank you.

David Opie, Managing Director of Todays Media, publishers of Todays Wills and Probate, said:

I often say to people that writing a daily news publication about an area of law that was enacted in 1837, and remains largely unchanged since, can be challenging.

And when you consider the huge shift toward digitisation, not to mention a global pandemic, the industry has gone through some significant changes over the past 8 years.

And yet I think the biggest changes are yet to come. Yes, they come with risk, but like anything there are opportunities for reward too. And we must embrace that opportunity as an industry.

Rest assured, Todays Wills and Probate will be there every step of the way keeping you update to date with the latest news, innovations and happenings in this fantastic sector. Thank you to everyone for their support over the past eight years, and heres to many more.

Karen Babington, Non-Executive Director of Todays Media and the driving force behind the publications early success said:

Has it really been 8 years since we launched Todays Wills and Probate? I always admired Chris (Harris) when he introduced Todays Conveyancer and developed it to be an independent hub for news, innovation and discussion, quickly becoming the go-to news publication for conveyancers. Thankfully, Chris supported me in my curiosity to launch a legal publication, extending our knowledge of the wills and probate sector and the specialists who work within it.

Its fulfilling that this respected publication has found a safe and respected place within the wills and probate sector, spanning both regulated and unregulated companies. I am lucky enough to have made many long-standing close friends over the eight years, shared many trials, tribulations and laughs which of course is an additional bonus.

Thanks to all of you who, during the eight-year term,have contributed to the publication, supported it financially, and of course to those of you who have subscribed. From TWP, the British Wills and Probate awards and Women in Wills were born with David Opie now firmly at the helm, what will be next?

CTT Group is a proud, long-standing partner of Todays Wills & Probate, and we are delighted to have played a part in supporting TWP from its inception to today, said Andrew Houston, Director of CTT Group, adding:

It has become a keystone for the sector and remains the only publication that spans the broad spectrum of practitioners, including, but not limited to, solicitors, will writers, IFAs and accountants. TWP keeps us all abreast of important news and allows for vital engagement, helping to connect many practitioners across the estate planning industry.

The British Wills and Probate Awards have been an exciting addition to our calendars, creating a genuine focus on best practices and inspiring all across the industry.

It has been a privilege to work with TWP and watch it grow year after year. Heres to many years more!

Michael Edwards, Group Managing Director of Property Solutions Group, enduring supporters of the publication and headline sponsors of the British Wills and Probate Awards, said:

Having been involved with Todays Wills & Probate since their early days, its been great to work with them and support their journey which has seen them become the central point of news, discussion, and celebration for the probate industry.

WillSuite is another long-standing partner of the publication. They said:

WillSuite have been partners of Todays Wills and Probate since our inception back in 2015. Having built revolutionary software for the will writing industry, we recognised the need to shout across the rooftops about it to ensure we could present it to industry professionals far and wide.

Partnering with Todays Wills and Probate allowed us to grow the product into a success and attract a wide customer base. Our partnership continues to be a valuable marketing channel for us, especially with the shift into providing in-person events and conferences over recent years.

The team at WillSuite will be raising a glass to celebrate eight years of Todays Wills and Probate and its drive to not only keep the industry up to date with the latest news, but also the success it has had in bringing together a community of industry professionals.

This year also marks the fifth Annual British Wills and Probate Awards, which WillSuite are proud to be sponsoring.

Nik Harrison-Alway, Group Managing Director, Harrisons Probate Solutions, one of Todays Wills and Probates most recent partners, commented:

As a service provider to the legal sector its vital to keep up to date with the latest events, news, help and advice. Todays Wills and Probate and its subscribers continue to provide important content from across the industry and this meant it was an easy decision to partner with the publication.

Not only do we find the communications informative, but they assist in ensuring we are active as a company in continuing to grow our range of services to help support the sector.

Todays Wills and Probate has also become a valuable tool in helping to promote our company and services and ensure we are able to continue to grow and do what we are best at, which is to support private client solicitors with their probate support needs.

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Today's Wills and Probate turns 8! - Today's Wills & Probate

Review at a glanceH

aydns The Seasons has always been overshadowed by his other great oratorio, The Creation. Even the composer opined disparagingly that the characters in the latter were angels, whereas in the former they were peasants.

But the celebration of divinity in nature by Haydns progressive, Enlightenment-influenced librettist Baron Van Swieten, is music to the ears of a more sceptical generation such as ours. Less prejudiced by theological concerns, we may more clearly discern the musical virtues of the work.

And they are many, as was confirmed in this exhilarating performance by the Academy of Ancient Music chorus and orchestra under Laurence Cummings, with a skilfully Miltonian pastiche of an English translation by Paul McCreesh. There are at least two choruses that in their cumulative exuberance equal the celebrated The Heavens are Telling in The Creation and an astonishing wealth of mood and word-painting that exceeds even that of Haydns acknowledged masterpiece.

The cockerels raucous call (a squawking oboe) and the hunters gunshot (timpani) attracted sniffy comments from Haydns contemporaries, but to our ears, those and the summer rainstorm effects (the initial patter of rain on pizzicato strings, lightning flashes on flute, thunder on drum) seem delightful. As does the witty portrayal of a bagpipe drone by groaning strings and a glorious sunrise crowned by blazing trumpets. Theres even an anticipation of the Spinning Chorus from Wagners Flying Dutchman, not to be written for another 40 years.

The progress of the seasons was charted in stylishly evocative visuals provided by the Nina Dunn Studio, projected not on a screen but on the rear wall of the Barbican stage, whose wooden panelling provided a suitable backdrop for the bucolic scenes.

Haydn may have been dismissive of his peasants, but he would surely have been delighted by the three in this presentation: Rachel Nicholls and Benjamin Hulett as soprano and tenor soloists, rough in faux-bumpkin attire but gleaming in vocal allure, and Jonathan Lemalu, whose burnished bass-baritone, shot through with amber and gold hues like a seasoned cognac, offered exceptional pleasure on each reappearance.

Theres next to no operatic-style characterisation in The Seasons, but this trio did the best they could, with help from Martin Parr as staging director. Not until Autumn (the third section) do we learn that the names of the young couple are Hannah and Lucas and a frisson of love interest allowed them here to hold hands.

The final season is Winter, which begins in icy gloom but ends in jubilation. The conclusion may be a religious affirmation, but theres more than a touch of Van Swietens Enlightenment idealism. Haydn rose magnificently to the occasion and may even have surprised himself.

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The Seasons at the Barbican review: exhilarating performance by the Academy of Ancient Music - Evening Standard

Things to see, do, and enjoy in three American Buddhist hotspots.

Gingerhill Farm Retreats is the home of celebrated Buddhist artist Mayumi Oda. Photo via gingerhillfarm.com.

In the green oasis of the Foster Botanical Garden, tucked away at the edge of downtown Honolulu, stands a large bo tree. Not only does this stately tree offer a welcome respite from the bustle of the city, its a reminder of how the seeds of the dharma were planted and cultivated in Hawaii.

The Foster Botanical Gardens bo tree is descended from the tree under which the Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment. Charles Crust / Alamy Stock Photo.

The Foster Botanical Garden bo tree is descended from the tree in India under which Shakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment. Given to Native Hawaiian philanthropist Mary Robinson Foster by Anagarika Dharmapala in 1913, its a living memorial to their lifelong spiritual friendship and incredible work nurturing Buddhism in Sri Lanka and India, including restoring the sacred Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya.

A benefactor of Buddhist communities in Hawaii, Foster was instrumental in the building of the first Buddhist temple in Honolulu in 1900. She also donated the land that in 1918 would become the Honpa Hongwanji Hawaii Betsuin. Collaborating with Bishop Yemyo Imamura of the Jodo Shinshu school, they designed this temple to embody the hybrid nature of American Buddhism. The stunning white structure is situated in Honolulu on the slopes of the extinct volcanic cone Puowaina (Punchbowl) and features distinctive architectural elements representing Buddhisms Indian origin. While there is a traditional Japanese Shin Buddhist altar, there are also pews, an organ, and a pulpit, representing Buddhisms adaptation to its American home.

Shinnyo-en is a school of esoteric (Vajrayana) Buddhism that originated in Japan. Shinnyo-en Hawaii, established in Honolulu in 1971, is now famous for its annual lantern floating festival held on Memorial Day. Lantern Floating Hawaii is an opportunity to celebrate the cherished memories of loved ones and to offer a wish for peace. Each year thousands of lanterns gently float in the waters off Ala Moana Beach, casting a warm glow in the tropical twilight. Its a solemn yet joyful ceremony.

Every year, thousands of people attend the Lantern Floating Hawaii festival. Hosted by the Shinnyo-en Buddhist community, this is an opportunity to remember loved ones who have passed away. Photo courtesy of Shinnyo-en.

On the Big Island of Hawaii, in the fertile coffee growing region of Kona, the airport is named for Astronaut Ellison Onizuka, the first Shin Buddhist in space. Making your way down the scenic Mamalahoa Highway, with rolling green mountains on your left and the calm azure waters of the Pacific Ocean on your right, you pass the Kona Daifukuji Soto Mission and the Kona Hongwanji Buddhist Temple. Established in 1914 and 1897 respectively, these temples were founded by Japanese immigrants who came to Kona to farm coffee. Enshrined at Kona Daifukuji is a beautiful statue of the bodhisattva of compassion known as Hawaii Kannon. At Kona Hongwanji, there is a serene image of Amida Buddha carved from a piece of sandalwood, which was harvested from the rainforest above the town of Kealakekua in 1932.

Three brothers hang loose in front of Kona Daifukuji Soto Mission. Photo courtesy of Daifukuji Soto Mission.

About a half-hour drive from the Kona International Airport, take a narrow, winding road to a five-acre organic farm, Gingerhill Farm Retreat. In addition to growing a variety of fruits, vegetables, and medicinal herbs, Gingerhill is a dynamic dharma center where people learn to take care of their bodies and minds by caring for the land. Guests not only work on the farm, they practice yoga and Zen meditation daily. The renowned Buddhist artist and activist Mayumi Oda lives at Gingerhill, and its where she creates her powerful artwork celebrating the feminine divine. Its truly a place of healing, creativity, and learning.

From urban centers to the rural backroads, Buddhism has flourished in Hawaii since the late 1800s, becoming part of the rich cultural and spiritual fabric of the Aloha State. These are just a few of the amazing Buddhist sites you can see when you visit the islands.

The Nicholas Roerich Museum features paintings by the Russian mysticadventurer. Photo by David Grossman. Alamy Stock Photo.

Im not a New Yorker, but I love New York, always have. In recent decades my visits there have revolved around my work as editor-in-chief of Lions Roar. So combining my enthusiasms for New York and Buddhism, Im happy to offer you a one-day tour of Buddhist New York.

Our notional visit starts up in Morningside Heights, with a walk around the iconic campus of Columbia University. Here, D. T. Suzuki electrified a generation of 1950s avant-garde thinkers and artists with his lectures on Zen. In the stacks of Columbias famed library, Thich Nhat Hanh had a deep experience of emptiness he described in his journal. And as Je Tsongkhapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies, Robert Thurman pioneered the field of buddhology and made it okay to be an academic who is also a practicing Buddhist.

Leaving campus, we walk over to Riverside Drive to the New York Buddhist Church, founded in 1938 as a temple of the Jodo Shinshu Pure Land school. In front of the temple, contemplate a bronze statue of Shinran, the founder of Shin Buddhism, that survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

Statue of Shinran at the Buddhist Church of New York. It survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. RegentsPark / CC BY-SA 4.0

A couple of blocks away is the Nicholas Roerich Museum, dedicated to work of the Russian artist, traveler, and thinker. Here you can see an extensive collection of Roerichs paintings of Tibet and other mystical subjects. Touching in their naivete, theyre interesting examples of European fascination with and romanticization of Eastern religion.

Now hop on the West Side subway and enjoy a walk across Central Park to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where you can tour one of the worlds finest collections of Buddhist art. Dont miss the luohans, among the greatest examples of Buddhist art in the world. There are sixteen of these life-like Chinese statues of arhats in existence, and two of them are in the Metropolitan.

Pause and contemplate the living spirit of meditation and enlightenment right in front of you.

Now head down to Chelsea to the Rubin Museum of Art, one of the few museums in the world completely dedicated to the art, culture, and religions of the Himalayas. The permanent collection offers an outstanding overview of Himalayan art, and the temporary exhibits, annual themes, and lecture series are always first-rate (as is the caf).

Seated arhat (luohan) at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Tomas Abad / agefotostock

Not far away in Chelsea is Tibet House, founded by Robert Thurman and Richard Gere at the Dalai Lamas request to showcase and preserve Tibetan culture. After you enjoy their gallery and bookstore, take the opportunity to thank the dedicated staff for their work on behalf of Tibet.

Now head across town, perhaps through Washington Square Park, to the East Village, where avant-garde poetry, theatre, and music met Buddhism and sparks flew. Buddhist poets Allen Ginsberg, Diane di Prima, and Anne Waldman read at the Poetry Project at St. Marks Church; Patti Smith played at CBGB; and Ginsberg, Philip Glass, William Burroughs, and other Buddhist and Buddhist-adjacent cultural figures lived in the neighborhood. The East Village is a lot more gentrified now, but you can still feel that counterculture spirit.

Keep heading downtown to Soho and drop in at the Village Zendo if theyre open. There you will meet a lively, artsy, and diverse mix of Zen practitioners led by Roshi Pat Enkyo OHara, one of the leading lights of American Zen. Their new location in the American Thread Building has great karma: it used to be the late Gehlek Rinpoches New York center, where students like Ginsberg and Glass heard dharma talks by this outstanding Tibetan teacher.

Finally, head down to Chinatown and notice the many temples in storefronts or commercial buildings that serve Chinese and other East Asian Buddhists in their own languages. You get a glimpse of the vibrant Asian American Buddhist population of New Yorkit numbers in the millions. And if you happen to be in the city on Buddha Day, join the Vesak celebration put on by the New York Buddhist Council that brings together all the Buddhist communities of the five boroughs.

Bonus: If you have time, hop on the L Train to Brooklyn, where you can visit or sit zazen at the Fire Lotus Temple, the NYC center of the Mountains and Rivers Order founded by the late John Daido Loori Roshi. If my friend Geoffrey Shugen Arnold is there, say hello and ask him for a few words of Zen. Then you can head back to Manhattan after a long but I hope rich day in Buddhist New York.

An Edo-period statue of Bishamonten at San Franciscos Asian Art Museum. In Japan, Bishamonten statues frequently guard Buddhist temples. Photo by Archive PL / Alamy Stock Photo.

Had Siddhartha Gautama visited the San Francisco Bay Area during his lifetime, he might have seen it as a pure land. The rolling hills then bristled with redwoods, crystalline streams fed to the sea, and animals roamed the coast and inland valleys. Two and a half millennia later, the Bay Area is a rich pilgrimage destination for his followers, home to a full range of vibrant Buddhist communities.

The history of dharma study in the San Francisco area began in 1899, when two Shin Buddhist teachers came from Japan to provide spiritual guidance to Japanese immigrants. In time, the community developed into the Buddhist Churches of America. Located in San Franciscos Japantown, the local branch of the BCA (which also houses the BCAs national headquarters) offers beginning and advanced instruction in Buddhism and meditation, for children as well as adults.

Dancers performing at the national headquarters of the Buddhist Churches of America in celebration of Bon, a three-day festival honoring ancestors. Photo by Beppe Sabatini.

Established by the late Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, author of Zen Mind, Beginners Mind, San Francisco Zen Center has been at the heart of the Bay Area Buddhist community since 1962. It supports three related locations. City Center, in central San Francisco, features daily meditation, individual guidance with experienced teachers, and frequent dharma talks. Set amidst the coastal hills of Marin, Green Gulch Farm offers apprenticeships for working guests, as does Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. Located east of Big Sur in Californias Ventana Wilderness, Tassajara hosts long-term retreats and short-term visitors in the summer.

In the 1950s and early 1960s, Beat writers such as Jack Kerouac, Diane di Prima, Gary Snyder, and Allen Ginsberg embraced Buddhist teachings, and poet Lawrence Ferlinghettis City Lights Bookstore quickly became the literary hub of the S.F. dharma scene. Still in its original North Beach location, the store has retained its Beat ambiance and continues to serve as a resource and meeting place for the literary community.

San Francisco Zen Center was established in 1962 by Shunryu Suzuki Roshi and his American students. Photo by Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle.

Located in Berkeley, the Nyingma Institute founded by the Tibetan teacher Tarthang Tulku offers classes and workshops that, they explain, require no belief system or commitment to Buddhism. Programs range from beginning meditation classes, to guidance in chanting traditional Tibetan prayers, to learning the Tibetan language. Instruction in Kum Nyea form of Tibetan yoga integrating all the bodys senses and energy centersis also available.

The lively, blossoming Uptown district of Oakland is home to East Bay Meditation Center. Drawing on a variety of spiritual traditions, with a focus on Insight Meditation, EBMC serves Oaklands diverse population by focusing on radical inclusivity, cultivating an atmosphere uniquely welcoming to people of color, individuals with disabilities, and members of the LGBTQI community. Along with meditation practice and introductory Buddhist teachings, EBMC offers classes on community healing, tai chi, yoga, social justice, and mindful parenting.

Located on an unassuming street in Berkeley, Wat Mongkolratanaram has long served as a gathering place for the Thai Buddhist community. This elegant wat (temple) is justly famous for its Sunday Buddhist brunch. With proceeds benefitting the sangha, this outdoor market offers a wonderful variety of Thai cuisine and attracts scores of students from nearby U.C. Berkeley and beyond. The temple is also a center for Thai language and music studies, with weekly presentations (mainly in Thai) given by resident monks.

City Lights in bohemian North Beach is an independent bookstore-publisher famous as a center of American literary culture and publisher of Allen Ginsbergs Howl and other Beat classics. Danita Delimont / Alamy Stock Photo.

Siddhartha Gautama is said to have asked that his image never be idolized, and for centuries his presence was symbolized simply by a lotus flower or his footprints. The first crude likenesses of Buddha appeared more than half a millennium after his death, on early coins of the Kushan Empire. But the floodgates were opened. Walking through the beautifully presented displays of San Franciscos Asian Art Museumlocated just steps from City Hallone can trace the global explosion of Buddhist art as it swept through Asia.

About an hours drive past the Golden Gate Bridge is Spirit Rock Insight Meditation Center, one of the most active Buddhist teaching communities in the Western world. With an emphasis on mindfulness and compassion, the retreat centerlocated on 411 acres of rolling hills and oak woodlands in Marin countyoffers scores of programs, from open-to-the-public dharma talks to ten-day silent retreats.

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Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Enlightenment - Lion's Roar

In his letter (June 1) regarding our op-ed The Stakeholder War on the Enlightenment (May 24), Cambridge Prof. Brian Cheffins provides the legal history behind our claim that Parliament repealed royal charters, permitted businesses to incorporate simply by meeting preset capital requirements, and established the rules of law governing private competition.

We condensed 150 years of history into one sentence to explain how Parliament liberated private corporations from government control. Mr. Cheffins correctly explains the legal transformation but misses our point on the economic transformation. The 1720 Bubble Act effectively banned new joint stock companies but didnt eliminate existing corporations. Without the predations of stakeholder capitalism, the latter grew in value by 48% over the ensuing century. When resources were lacking, big projects went to large partnerships, according to Harvard Prof. David Landes. In the nineteenth century, when things got costlier and risks greater, Parliament turned to the most effective device for mobilizing capital . . . , the chartered joint stock company.

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The Corporation and the Story of Prosperity - The Wall Street Journal