Instilling belief in your players is one of the biggest priorities for a young head coach. If the players are behind your overall message and schematic philosophy, there is endless room for growth. For all the stumbles and one-sided defeats last season, one thing was for certain with the Falcons: The players believed in Arthur Smith.

They knew he was looking to get them to grow and put them in positions to flourish. Even when Smith made a poor decision to go for it on fourth down or failed to manage the clock properly, or called a highly questionable play, everyone played hard and remained committed to his methods. Building that unity within a locker room in rigorous circumstances speaks volumes about the type of coach Smith is.

Despite a rare outburst at a postgame press conference following an excruciating opening day defeat to New Orleans, Smith is proving to be the leader the Falcons need him to be, along with being the forward-thinking, creative play-caller they envisioned would take the offense to great heights. Smith is doing that by making them one of the more prolific units in the league.

Only five teams have produced more explosive big plays than them after four weeks of action. Unlike units such as Cleveland and Chicago, the Falcons are creating big plays at a balanced rate on the ground and through the air. Smith is using play action and max protection to his advantage in providing Marcus Mariota more high-percentage looks. He is also working relentlessly to help give the Falcons a legitimate ground game for the first time since 2017. That lethal running game was on full display in a memorable win over Cleveland.

Running for over 200 yards as a team is an extraordinary feat regardless of what takes place in the game. For that to be accomplished despite having the ball for barely over 24 minutes is a testament to how dominant the Falcons were on the ground. The Browns had over ten minutes of possession with their sensational running back tandem of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, yet failed to win and gain more rushing yards. Thats how productive the Falcons were on the ground.

They made it evident from the start of the season against New Orleans. As long as the game remains competitive, Smith is going to look to run the ball 30+ times. It already worked to great effect in two games this season, including a much-needed win over Seattle.

The circumstances were more difficult this time around with Cordarrelle Patterson essentially sidelined for most of the second half due to a lingering knee issue, which ultimately put him on short-term injured reserve. With no Patterson or Damien Williams, they had to rely on their core of inexperienced running backs.

Promising rookie Tyler Allgeier, preseason workhorse Caleb Huntley, and converted back Avery Williams had to save the languishing offense against Cleveland. After three consecutive three-and-out drives where Smith called two running plays in total, alterations were necessary.

Mariota was erratic with his ball placement, jittery in the pocket, and struggled to read Clevelands coverage looks. An interception to Denzel Ward on the next drive gave Smith no other alternative but to put the game on his untested backs and enigmatic offensive line. That was the moment everything changed.

While mostly using his traditional zone read concepts, Smith added some variance with his run calls. Getting his athletic offensive line on the move while running in 22 personnel with Pitts lined up to the outside helped them overwhelm an outmanned Browns front seven.

Look no further than Drew Dalman showing impressive agility and technique to execute the pull to create space for Avery Williams to gain 21 yards. It was an astute touch on Smiths part to put his most explosive back on the field to take the handoff to maximize the unique plays potential.

As the game wore on, it became apparent the Falcons had the most success running towards the right side. Dalman had his best game as a pro. Kaleb McGary continues to make drastic strides as an overall blocker. The player who set the tone and made the biggest difference was potential future All-Pro right guard Chris Lindstrom.

The former first-round pick made outstanding blocks all game, from sealing off nose tackles to making pulls to the outside to clear space on outside runs. There were also moments where he straight-up mauled defenders at the second level. Linebacker Sione Takitaki got annihilated by Lindstrom on one of many runs that went for a first down in the second half.

The head coach isnt always going to have all the answers. Sometimes, it will take the coaching staff he assembled to supply guidance on what adjustments to make and which players should be on the field more often. Smith stated running backs coach Michael Pitre suggested giving Huntley an extended opportunity.

That decision made the in-game adjustments come to full fruition as Huntley barreled through defenders, cut between the tackles, and gained yards after contact on what felt like every other carry. His emergence provided the spark for the offense to run and execute an efficient game plan to put together a remarkable performance that could prove to be the launching pad the Falcons needed going forward as a physical, resilient team.

Although Pitre deserves enormous praise for pushing to get Huntley much-needed carries, Smith should receive his dose as well for deciding to keep Huntley. The undrafted running back wasnt mentioned in the general Falcons running back conversations going into the season.

Unlike the public, the coaching staff believed he could be a contributor to the roster. Bringing him onto the roster for this game with Patterson banged up proved to be a brilliant decision as Huntley bounced off defenders like a prime Jason Snelling and consistently produced steady gains.

The mid-round selections of Dalman and Allgeier were equally as influential in the comeback win. Smith made it clear Allgeier was the running back the organization wanted as the draft went on. His sensational performance in the Independence Bowl last year made him the ideal fit for how Smith wanted to shape the running game.

Watching Allgeier let blocks develop, burst into lanes, and carry defenders with him downfield was something to behold. It was the breakout performance that should propel him to take on an expanded role, especially with Patterson sidelined for the next month.

A successful running game goes beyond the running backs and offensive line. It takes a real collaborative effort to take over a game on the ground. That was apparent when watching Smiths offenses in Tennessee wear defenses down and dictate the flow of the game. The way Smith shapes different formations using a mixture of shifts and motions makes the offense so difficult to defend.

It makes a player like Parker Hesse so valuable when you can line him up in different areas to make blocks to create lanes. Keith Smith has become more valuable as well in Smiths offense. Both players are being inserted into positions that best suit their capabilities as willing, hardnosed blockers.

The way the playmakers on the outside are fully embracing the importance of run blocking made a difference against Cleveland. Drake London had a tremendous crackback block on Alex Wright to help Patterson earn a 12-yard gain. Kyle Pitts made multiple solid blocks on the outside. Despite being likely frustrated by the lack of opportunities in the passing game, both players made their mark elsewhere. Being capable blockers is something that is engrained into pass-catchers in Smiths offense.

Olamide Zaccheaus spoke to me in August about the necessity of being able to block to play in Smiths offense. After Sundays win, Pitts told ESPNs Michael Rothstein about how he takes pride in being able to block effectively. It takes consistent drilling and communication to make sure receivers know their duty and the importance of handling their blocking responsibilities. For these young players to embrace blocking and help contribute to a 202-yard rushing performance shows the power of Smiths influence across the locker room.

Smith cant be solely credited for the shrewd decisions on the offensive side of the ball. Dee Alfords game-sealing interception had to be extra special for Smith and Terry Fontenot. Alford was signed three days after the 2021 season ended for the Falcons. The organization opted to take a chance on two players from the CFL in Alford and Brayden Lenius. Alford has seized every opportunity to prove himself since being signed to the point where he earned his place as a valuable contributor.

For him to rise up into the air and secure the victory was the cherry on top in the dramatic victory. Alford is always strategizing how to get better. Adding young talent with a strong work ethic, powerful ambition, and desire to learn is one of the primary aspects behind the teams overall improvement and unified culture.

As encouraging and exciting as the last two performances have been, the Falcons face two upcoming tall orders. The opportunity to battle two fearsome defenses in Tampa Bay and San Francisco will be an excellent test to see where Smith stands going against two of the top defensive minds in the league. Todd Bowles and DeMeco Ryans wont hesitate to bring frequent pressure with their ultra-athletic linebackers and savvy front fours. How Smith counters it with play action and max protection will be fascinating to observe.

What we do know is the Falcons offense is far from being a finished product. Its a foregone conclusion that Desmond Ridder will be stepping onto the field sooner rather than later. His arm, quick decision-making, and poise in the pocket should open things up in the passing game, particularly for Pitts, who Smith needs to do a better job of getting in positions to make big plays. How long Smith waits to make the decision at quarterback could determine if this team will seriously be competitive into January or just feisty and fun.

For the first time in years, the Falcons are legitimately exciting. They have a roster battling hard on every snap and are capable of making timely plays on both sides of the ball. Regardless of the personnel limitations, they play with high intensity and never quit attitude. It resembles their head coachs journey, who worked his way to greater heights in six different positions for nearly a decade in Tennessee.

Smiths determination and persistence to become a head coach has rubbed off on players who were overlooked, undrafted, or not utilized properly on their previous teams. The offense comes prepared with a strategy to outwork and outmaneuver defenses. Thats one of the biggest things you can ask for a team with minimal expectations.

The biggest takeaway from the first part of the season is Smiths substantial growth as a coach. Hes more adaptable than ever before. He understands his team and this game better than ever before. He knows how to maximize his offense more than ever before. No matter the obstacles, the Falcons are going to come up with a plan to beat teams and be ruthless with it. It wont always work, but its already working more often.

Sometimes, it will involve slicing up defenses with play action. Sometimes, it will be (in the glorious words of Smith) running the piss out of the football. Smiths vision may take some time to reach its final form, but his methods and decisions are starting to become something you must take seriously.

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Falcons head coach Arthur Smiths vision is beginning to come to life - The Falcoholic

This week, the internet was puzzled and amused by a viral video taken during a meal at a womens retreat. In the clip, two women are discussing the relative merits of differing plates of barbecue food.

On the right is Stormy Wellington, a wealth coach with 1.4 million Instagram followers who charges up to $10,000 for her weekend workshops. Holding a plate with a piece of corn and two chicken wings, she tells friend, mentee, and business partner Tammy Price that the plate she had accepted stacked with mashed potatoes, a sandwich and a hot dog is low vibration. She elaborates that while Prices plate looks suitable for a hood rat, her own is fit for royalty.

The strange lesson became an instant meme, and the jokes about feasting on low vibration plates were bountiful. All in all, the consensus was that its kind of weird for to judge another persons meal as inferior particularly when youre eating the same food, and, as Price says in the clip, the plate was served that way.

In between posts celebrating our freedom to pile on the meats and sides, some criticized Wellington for her coaching style and principles. Quoting her characterization of the offending plate, actress Keke Palmer quipped on , Guess Im a hood rat.

Price, for her part, defended Wellingtons lecture, saying the two are close friends and that Wellington mentored her from the point of homelessness to living in a $1.2 million house. Shes now an entrepreneur and inspirational speaker.

Reached for comment by Rolling Stone, Wellington answered questions through an assistant. It was clear she hadnt softened her view of low vibration plates.

People have become more conscious about what they put in their mouth because if you really pay attention to the video, that plate did not represent who Tammy and I are as leaders and top earners in our health and wellness company, Wellington says. (The two women sell supplements for Total Life Changes, a multi-level marketing brand.) So we have people going on diets and changing their habits all from that video. And we also have people threatening me Im good with the good and bad.

In any event, the virality appears to have been a boon for Wellington. Ive learned that this type of delivery gets a lot of attention, she says. Im learning how to deliver messages like this all the time because I am willing to go through the crucifixion to get the message across.

But what is a low vibration plate, exactly? On that topic, Wellington who specifies that shes a wealth coach, not a life coach goes into more detail.

Foods carry energy, she says. We are what we eat and when you have a plate of food that looks like its for [two to three] people, thats excessive eating, its gluttony. Thats low vibration. It was the amount of food on her plate that was low vibration. Remember overeating is called gluttony (Deuteronomy 21:20). The way the plate was prepared and the lack of neatness of the plate was low vibration.

That Wellington didnt just say plate was overcrowded and messy, or that Price was eating too much again, not typically objections raised at a casual backyard cookout is no doubt a reflection of her personal brand: as a coach and mentor, she laces her commentary with a kind of higher wisdom. And this conversation was about upholding a certain image for the business partners. Of Price, Wellington says, Ive had her back from the beginning and I will have her back to the end, but that Tammy and I cannot represent health and wellness and not look like it.

As for the backlash, Wellington isnt concerned, noting that negative news travels faster than positive. Her email response to Rolling Stone included a lengthy mantra that repeatedly states: No weapon formed against me shall prosper. She maintains that the video has inspired viewers to start dieting or go vegan. Sharing the low vibration plate discussion on her TikTok, she wrote that it had ruffled some feathers. On her Instagram, meanwhile, she promoted a High Vibration fitness challenge presumably the antidote to the spiritual morass of a low vibration plate.

Whether Wellington comes away from the controversy with a larger following, or a band of haters ready to turn her next curious coinage into another mocking meme, remains to be seen. Maybe shell get both! Either way, many of us will never look at paper plates of burgers and chicken wings the same. After serving ourselves, we may have to pause and ask what kind of vibrations weve manifested. But well laugh it off and dig in, because hey, were hungry and its really not that deep.

Read this article:
Influencer Who Warned Against Low Vibration Plates Explains What the Hell That Means - Rolling Stone

SARASOTA - To friends and colleagues at his beloved Riverview High School, he was "The Ripper."

But to the only child of Ed Repulski, he was, simply, "Ace." Walking the hallways of Riverview, Ram student Jill Strafaci often would see her father. "But I couldn't yell, 'hey, dad' down the hallway every time," she said. "So, I called him Ace."

When it came to the school of which Ed Repulski was the first athletic director, first basketball coach, one of its first teachers, and founder of the Ram golf program, Ace was all heart. "His blood is the color of Riverview," Joyce, his wife, said in a 2018 story on Repulski. "He just adored the school, and nowadays, the kind of loyalty that he had for it is, I think, non-existent."

And the school that adored Ed Repulski today is in mourning. The man who coached the Ram boys team for nearly 40 years and won more than 600 matches, died peacefully Saturday at his assisted living facility at age 93.

More: A special corner of Ram history for 'Ripper'

More: Riverview sage, Ed Repulski, was there when it all began

The news of Repulski's passing came as a shock to John Sprague, who replaced him as Riverview boys golf coach in 2011. Sprague visited Repulski two months ago and said his mind was clear, recalling people and places. "I was shocked," Sprague said. "He was pretty sharp. I spent thousands of hours with that guy at Riverview. Tell you what, it felt good to talk to him.

"Mr. Ram. He was there the day they opened the doors at Riverview."

Hired by school principal Ed Brown to coach football and serve as athletic director, Repulski arrived in Sarasota in 1958. And while his Ram football and, later, basketball teams didn't flourish, the golf program he founded grew and succeeded under his leadership.

Under Repulski, the Ram boys won two state titles, two runners-up and 12 district crowns. He got Jill started in the sport and it paid off with a golf scholarship to the University of Florida, where Strafaci was a four-year letter-winner on the Lady Gator golf team. Her son, Tyler, is a pro golfer who in 2020, won the U.S. Amateur Championship.

Golf was Repulski's passion and it showed in his commitment to the sport. He was a three-time Florida Golf Coach of the Year, and three times won the District Golf Coach of the Year award, as chosen by the National High School Athletics Coaches Association.

He served 16 years as the state golf chairman for the Florida Athletic Coaches Association (FACA), and in 1990, was inducted into the FACA Hall of Fame.

Sprague said that whenever the Florida High School Activities Association had a question about golf, they didn't consult a rule book. They consulted with Repulski. The state golf tournament regularly was held at Bent Tree Golf Course. Why? "Because he did a great job," Sprague said. "He had them organized."

Away from the golf course, Repulski served as an FHSAA official in basketball for 22 years, football for six, and baseball for one. Strafaci said it was common for her to do homework in the stands while her dad officiated a basketball game. He left teaching and coaching for a year to work in the Riverview administration. And only for a year.

"He just didn't like it because he was away from his kids," Strafaci said, "and he wanted to get back to teaching." Her dad's legacy, she said, is easy. "The kids," she said. "The kids were really important to him."

As Ed Repulski was to them.

(The funeral for Ed Repulski will be private. A Celebration of Life ceremony will take place later this month at an undecided place and date.)

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Former Riverview Rams boys golf coach Ed Repulski dies at 93 - Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Rachel Whitton, Deputy Head Pastoral and Boarding at Heathfield School explains the mental health and wellbeing it has adopted following its success in Australia.

With mental health continuing to feature prominently in the news, the central importance of happiness and wellbeing is never far from our minds. Taking a positive approach to help students develop the pillars of good mental health to stay well and optimise quality of life is key, and with careful planning this can become an integral part of school life and minimise the spread of the mental health pandemic.

At Heathfield we have chosen to implement an innovative mental health and wellbeing programme which has taken Australia by storm and were fortunate to be the first UK school to adopt the programme. Rather than identifying those in distress or at risk, the positive education programme aims to promote wellbeing from the outset.

At Heathfield School, students can learn about the different aspects of positive psychology and related strategies that they can use in their day to day lives both now and in the future. With the increase in mental health issues among teenagers it is imperative that schools address these issues in a way that is preventative, just as you might keep yourself physically healthy by eating, exercising, and sleeping well.

We have chosen to implement an innovative mental health and wellbeing programme which has taken Australia by storm and were fortunate to be the first UK school to adopt the programme _ Rachel Whitton, Heathfield School

Students in forms one to three receive weekly or fortnightly flourishing lessons which include yoga, meditation and mindfulness and strategies developed from research in positive psychology and positive education. A part of these lessons include Bounce Forwards resilience curriculum. Examples of such lessons might include healthy habits for mental wellbeing, considering random acts of kindness and developing their character strengths. They are given time to reflect on such strategies and are encouraged to practise them outside of the lessons.

Students in form four this year are embarking on mental health mentor training, a course we have co-written with Alicia Drummond, founder of the Teen Tips website. This will give students understanding of the psychology of mental health and illness, listening skills and health coping strategies. They will have lessons in active listening skills and elements of cognitive behavioural therapy to help them to understand how unhelpful thought patterns can be reframed to reduce irrational reactions.

As part of the new sixth form programme, students can opt into studying for an RSPH accredited level two qualification as a young health champion. This is a recognised health award specialising in health improvement, health promotion and in focussing on emotional wellbeing. This will lead to students taking leadership for support and promotion of emotional wellbeing within the school community. They will also receive training to be peer educators, using the mental health foundations peer educator programme, playing a part in campaigns, assemblies, and mental health days in school.

Both staff and pupils are encouraged to take advantage of wellbeing initiatives such as doggy therapy once a week, yoga classes once a week and life coaching and wellbeing peer mentors. For staff we offer a wellbeing therapist, yoga, free meals, monthly social opportunities, life coaching, and are part of the employee assistance programme (EAP), delivered by Health Assured the UK and Irelands leading wellbeing provider.

Over the last year our flourishing curriculum has developed and grown from an innovative Australian based positive education curriculum to a tailor-made provision for the students and staff at our school. It is constantly being evaluated and adapted to target the areas of greatest need. This way we can enable our students to truly flourish and achieve their potential while enjoying life and learning.

We analyse the impact of this programme by using flourishDx surveys for staff and pupils to inform a variety of proactive initiatives, risk assess areas of concern, strength identification, mood tracking and target support for both staff and pupils. Figure 1 illustrates the progress that has been seen in the comparison of our two surveys which highlight the rise in positive emotions from May 2021 to June 2022.

Read more about the IET World Mental Health Day campaign

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Does the mental health pandemic have a vaccine? - Independent Education Today

Life coach Cori Satori came to GTU to talk about her battle with breast cancer. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Satori wants to bring awareness as well as talk about what it is like to experience that especially as a life coach.

Just a year-and-a-half ago, a then 39-year-old Satori celebrated her sons third birthday and quit her job to become a life coach full time. Being in her tricenarian decade, Satori had yet to get her annual screening or mammograms. To err on the side of caution, Satori went to her doctor after feeling a lump on her breast. While she was blindsided and it was a devastating experience, she feels a sense of gratitude, especially since she had been practicing her own self development journey for nearly 10 years before her diagnosis. After seeing a documentary about how one needs to appreciate the negative things to have true appreciation for the good things.

I chose in that moment that I was going to focus on gratitude.That cancer was not meant to destroy me, it was meant to launch me forward. I was supposed to learn something from this obstacle. said Satori. She had tried holistic methods such as reiki and acupuncture as well as focusing on mindfulness. Her mantra was I am happy, I am healthy, I am healed, I am whole. Life coaching can help those suffering from devastating news.

Website: slclifecoaching.com

Instagram: @slclifecoaching

YouTube: Coach Cori Satori

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Breast cancer awareness - ABC4.com

Krisallis, led by founder Lisa Anderson, announced their monthly Healing Through Candles event today. There will only be 12 spots available per month, and the first session begins on October 23rd at 10am EST. Sessions will be conducted virtually and must be reserved in advance on their website. Along with this one-hour candle healing session, clients who participate in the program also have the opportunity to join a monthly support group where group members will be able to support each other in their growth journeys.

Candle healing therapy is a practice that has been around for thousands of years and has been used by just about every religion. It is used to promote healing and unite the mind, body, and soul. Many believe that a candles flame is a metaphor for the soul and that it can bring tranquility to a persons life. The process has many incredible benefits, such as a release of trapped energies, increased focus and concentration, and improved overall mood and well-being. People who would particularly benefit from this therapy are individuals who suffer from mental health issues such as anxiety, stress, and overactive thinking; individuals who feel negative about their current life or who feel that negative energies tend to follow them; and individuals who like to balance energies within their own mind and personal space.

In this guided interactive meditation, led by Lisa Anderson, clients are also encouraged to work with their hands throughout the session rather than idly sitting with the candle. This stimulation, along with the incredibly powerful abilities of the candle itself, helps clients feel less hopeless about difficult situations in their life.

According to Krisallis, what sets these therapy sessions apart from the rest is how Anderson doesnt just show her clients how to do the therapy but helps them activate and stabilize their energies to be able to move past previous fears causing anxiety. Clients will feel a sense of relaxation and a release of negative thoughts throughout the process.

The therapeutic session involves mystical elements along with multiple activities such as writing, interactive guided activities, waters, and more. From the start of the therapy until the very end, participants will remain hands-on in the process and fully engrossed throughout the hour.

Benefits of joining a Healing Through Candles session with Krisallis:

Reduces tensions

Frees oneself from negativity (mind, body, and soul)

Releases trapped energy

Quiets the mind from overthinking

Monthly support group available after the program

Important Event Information:

Monthly Event starts October 23rd, 2022, at 10am EST

Only 12 Spots are Available Per Session

Virtual Event

Spots must be reserved online

About Krisallis

Inspired by love and a passion for personal and professional growth, Krisallis goal is to help their clients obtain clarity and move forward in their life paths. Led by founder Lisa Anderson, Krisallis is dedicated to helping their clients figure out how to enjoy a full life. They offer clarity readings, life coaching, and business coaching, which can all be booked on their website. Krisallis states that what makes their services different from others is their intense compassion. They take the time to provide solutions for their clients. Krisallis does not only want to assist their clients in their journeys; they want to be a part of their journeys. According to Krisallis, they make it their mission to make every moment of your time as enjoyable as possible!

Contact:

Lisa AndersonEmail: [emailprotected]Book an Appointment

The Benefits of the Candle Healing Therapy Process

The anxieties of life can sometimes feel incredibly overwhelming. Bills, relationships, family, and health are just some of the things that we have to learn how to manage daily. However, just because there are stresses in life doesnt mean we cant learn how to maintain positive attitudes most of the time. Sometimes, we just need a little healing. Thats where candle healing therapy comes in. Candle healing is a process that has been used for thousands of years, and in just about every religion, to promote healing by uniting the mind, body, and soul. Some believe that the candles flame represents our own souls light and our connection to a higher power. This unique process often consists of multiple activities that can provide a variety of benefits for your mental health and well-being. Here, well discuss some of the top reasons why you should consider trying it out. Keep reading to learn more!

The feeling of meditating with a candle

The feeling of meditating with a candle is incomparable to any other. When you light the candle, you begin to feel a sense of peace and calm. The flickering flame provides a focal point for your meditation, and the gentle light helps to relax your mind and body. This process can have a profound impact on your mental state, making it an essential part of any meditation practice.

The sensation of releasing stress and mental blockage

With so much happening in our lives daily, the constant stream of thoughts can feel like a never-ending river, making it hard to focus on anything else. However, candle therapy creates an almost hypnotic atmosphere that helps you to release stress and mental blockage. As you meditate, you may find that your mind becomes clearer and more focused. The world around you fades away, and you are able to connect with your inner thoughts and feelings. The experience is truly unique, and it can help to promote a sense of well-being.

The power of working hands-on throughout the entire session

While some candle healing sessions just consist of just sitting with the candle, better practices will have you working with your hands throughout the entire session. When participating in candle healing, this act of doing something, rather than feeling hopeless about a situation is incredibly powerful.

Candle healing therapy brings about mindfulness

The repetitive actions during and after a candle healing process are quite a mystic process as well as a therapeutic one. These repetitive actions, along with the power of the candle itself, will help bring a person to a stage of mindfulness that lingers even after a session. Many people report improved mental health and feeling more relaxed, optimistic, patient, and courageous after a candle healing session.

Candle healing therapy is a powerful way to promote healing. Every day, people are using candle healing to help them create more positive and less anxious lives. If you are interested in trying out Candle Healing Therapy with visit our Krisallis today for more information!

Sources

https://www.lifepositive.com/service/candle-healing

https://medikoe.com/article/what-is-candle-therapy-7060

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/de-stress/heres-how-to-try-candle-therapy/articleshow/49687051.cms

Media ContactCompany Name: KrisallisContact Person: Lisa AndersonEmail: Send EmailCountry: United StatesWebsite: https://www.krisallis.com

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Spiritual Advisor Announces Healing Through Candles Once-a-Month Event Manage Stress & Anxiety Levels With Healing Candles - Digital Journal

Image: Voltaire reads the Orphan of China, by Anicet Charles Gabriel Lemonnier, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

In two articles so far (hereandhere), I have been exploringhow justified thenew atheistsappropriation of Darwinian ideas is. This is the third and final post. As weve seen,Erasmus Darwin was a quintessential legatee of Enlightenment prepossessions. As its somewhat virtue-signaling name implies, the thinkers of the Enlightenment wished to distance themselves from anything that smacked of religious superstition. This led to the determination to declare a unilateral declaration of independence from the metaphysical sphere in favor of purely scientific modes of explanation. Yetin the face of the last century of scientific discoveries we have come to realize thathubristic expectations stemming fromthe Enlightenment dream of encompassing the whole of reality in some grand material theory of everything have been forced into a reluctant retreat.1

As a plethora of popular books, articles, and TV programs have recently intoned, our almost complete ignorance of the nature of ultimate reality has been laid bare by the work of Planck, Einstein, Heisenberg, Carlo Rovelli, and a host of microbiology specialists. Taken together, these scientific advances have united to challenge the Newtonian/Enlightenment paradigm. Scientists can no longer deliver certainty and predictability in the aftermath of such disconcerting advances in physics or in microbiology, which represent an unsuspected level of ultra-diminutive reality that has only revealed its bareexistencein the last seven decades or so thanks to the invention of the electron microscope in 1944. Indeterminacy and probabalism have emerged to subvert the Enlightenment conception of a predictable clockwork universe. We have been forced to acknowledge that the dimension of reality we know of is merely the observable, superficial part and that this rests on and is sustained by invisible trestles of substrate reality of which we have little inkling and to which our Cartesian notions of predictability and comprehensibility do not, alas, apply.

In short, the bright new dawn of Erasmus Darwins Enlightenment world has been replaced by the hauntingly surreal specter of what is now routinely referred to as quantum weirdness. Like it or not, Erasmuss simple and predictable world is no more, and we now find ourselves confronted by the truly vertigo-inducing predicament of being subject to an unpredictable cosmos we simply do not understand. It appears to me that the only intellectually defensible position to adopt in the light of such unanticipated scientific advances is to keep an open mind.The new atheists on the other hand continue to cling anachronistically to the same would-be omniscient paradigm of reality as that in which Erasmus Darwin reposed his faith. But whereas Erasmus had the extenuation of knowing nothing of the profounder reaches of reality into which modern scientific advances have given us at least some fleeting glimpses, the same excuse cannot be pleaded for the new atheists whose stance, either tacitly or wittingly, turns a blind eye to those hidden dimensions of existence.

Under the illusion of being the bright (their term) or enlightened ones, they appear, on the contrary, to have become the doctrinaire victims of a peculiarly modern form of obscurantism. It is as if they are doggedly clinging to an obsolete worldview which denies the relevance of much cutting-edge science. Their outlook has little in common with that of Charles Darwin whose later years were marked by what Peter Vorzimmer once termed frustrated confusion.2In that respect Darwin might be posthumously welcomed as an avatar of postmodern man in that he anticipated the decidedly non-omniscient spirit of our modern age. Such, needless to say, is not the mental universe inhabited by the new atheists whose philosophic stance seems more akin to that of Charless grandfather than to that of the grandson.

Continue reading here:
Darwin and the Loss of the Enlightenment Paradigm - Discovery Institute

That duality embodies Dare to Know, and the era itself, a period lauded for its great leaps forward in science and philosophy, but rife with contradictory failings. Printing plays prominently on both sides of the divide. Martin Luther broke the clergys grip on scripture by translating the bible from Latin and publishing it for the masses in 1522; by the 18th century, the printing industry had expanded to purposes both noble and nefarious. Think of mass printing as the Facebook of its time: an extraordinary tool for unity and progress, torqued in every possible direction, most of them not great. Dare to Know gamely explores its extremes.

The exhibitions introductory catalog essay offers a broad definition of the era and its discontents: (C)onceptions of the Enlightenment, its authors write, are intimately bound up with the ideals and failures of western modernity. Or as Margaret Atwood had it in The Handmaids Tale, a dystopian fantasy with a brutal ideal: Better never means better for everyone. Enlightenment is a relative term. The so-called Age of Reason was also very much an age of conquest, as European colonialism accelerated to every corner of the globe modernity, at its root. Neither enlightened nor reasonable, its brutality gave shape to the world today.

The Enlightenment yields at least one inarguable fact: It was the first real age of mass media. Printing technology, especially in color, advanced quickly throughout Europe in the 18th century. The reach of printed material was broad and unprecedented; as a tool to convince, cajole, or mislead, its power was unmatched. To extend the Facebook metaphor, printing was an explosive medium unrestrained by oversight and often fact, played to an audience without the tools and frequently without the will to scrutinize.

For a society still broadly illiterate, images had particular power. Even for those who could read, images vividly conveyed ideas in a way words could not. Detailed anatomical illustrations hardly faze us today, but they had seismic implications for 18th-century European society. In a section the show calls What does it mean to be human? a life-size print of a man relieved of his skin shows fine detail of every muscle fiber; in a tabletop vitrine, a textbook contains an unnervingly precise illustration of a fetus about to emerge from the womb.

Aimed mostly at an elite audience, such images were nonetheless jarring to a public and even a scientific community beholden to a notion of divine providence. Like Luthers publishing of the Bible almost two centuries before, widespread image distribution wobbled notions of Gods design with detailed studies of flora, fauna, and even the heavens. A luminous 1806 print here of the surface of the moon, captured over years of observation through a telescope by John Russell, may have demystified too much. Russell meant for the piece, with craters pockmarking its silvery surface, to pay homage to the majesty of the almighty. On a recent tour, exhibition co-curator Elizabeth Rudy speculated that it failed to find a broad audience because it was too scientifically precise.

Dare to Know took years to conceive, and includes loans from all over. It is impressively earnest in its breadth, treading the high ground of human ambition in philosophy and science. In a part of the exhibition dedicated to the burgeoning persuasion industry, William Hogarths Four Stages of Cruelty, from 1751, depict a violent mans intensifying transgressions: as a boy, torturing a dog; as a young coach driver, beating a horse to death; as an adult, murdering his pregnant lover; and finally executed for his crimes, his body being dismembered by scientists in a lab (in a final stroke of justice, a dog gnaws at his disembodied heart).

A moral tale with a ragged edge, Hogarths series embodies the competing values of a society in upheaval. A treatise against the rampant mistreatment of animals in Hogarths depiction, what we might now call a gateway crime the artist indulges his audience in wildly grotesque visual carnage. (Ill spare you the details of what he did to the poor dog.)

Hogarth had to walk a fine line: To convince, he would also have to entertain by familiar, brutal means. Enlightenment or not, this was still an era of public torture and execution. The Hogarth prints are a blunt reminder that the Enlightenment was at best a beginning for new ideas.

Dare to Know suggests a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. Blithe depictions of a society preoccupied with the niceties of social progress conveniently excluded unsavory elements of an era of upheaval. For the show, the museums borrowed from the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles a remarkable emblem of privileged excess: Louis Carrogis de Carmontelles Figures Walking in a Parkland, made between 1783 and 1800. Its a marvel both of technology and aspiration. A watercolor panorama across 10 connected sheets of paper, backlit and and set on a roller, it conjures an Arcadian scene of leisure amid lush gardens and ponds, a harmony of man and nature. Never mind, of course, the small snippet of society who could afford such indulgence, whether of money or time; an opulent amusement, the piece ignored the majority of a French nation gripped in rural poverty, or by squalor in cities choked by overcrowding and disease.

Dare to Know makes clear that enlightenment was available to select few, though it seeded something we might recognize. Popular revolutions in France and the United States grew at least partly out of Enlightenment notions of humanism and liberty, at odds with the dictates of a monarchy. Like the Enlightenment itself, they emerged grossly imperfect: France wound up with Napoleonic rule, and we with a democracy that recognized only white land-owning men. Flawed as it was, the experiment evolved, mostly for the better (though with wild midterm elections looming, lets hold that thought).

Dare to Know tells us its all too human for our reach to exceed our grasp. The exhibition ends where it begins: Just inside the doors, an image of a vast, planet-shaped orb shimmers like an alien landing pod touched down amid rows of cypress trees, blotting out the sky. It was made in 1784 by tienne-Louis Boulle, who imagined a cenotaph for Sir Isaac Newton, the preeminent natural philosopher of his day. With his oppressive ideal an absolute sublime Boulle proposed a utopia and dystopia all at once. Better for some, but definitely not all.

DARE TO KNOW: PRINTS AND DRAWINGS IN THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENT

At Harvard Art Museums, 32 Quincy St., Cambridge. Through Jan. 15, 2023. 617-495-9400, http://www.harvardartmuseums.org.

Murray Whyte can be reached at murray.whyte@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @TheMurrayWhyte.

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Harvard Art Museums examines the power of print in the Enlightenment era - The Boston Globe

The BBC recently decided to stop broadcasting in Arabic, alongside dozens of other languages, citing its decision on budgetary necessities.

Whatever the justification, a difficult question arises: was suspension really the best solution to confront the financial crisis, or was it better to resort to other sacrifices?

The importance of this question lies in the fact that the suspension option will remain under consideration by many international media experts.

In contrast to the enormous heritage of knowledge that the BBC has built over its 84 years of history, from which it has nourished successive generations to the extent that it has made the Arabic-speaking wing of the BBC a prestigious media school, thanks to its rich programs and broadcasters who captivated audiences with their voices

There is no doubt that those generations, raised on the legacy of the BBC and who have gleaned from it an inexhaustible intellectual treasure, will be most saddened by this suspension decision.

There is no field of knowledge that did not occupy a distinguished place among comprehensive programs: scientific, literary, philosophical, politics, social sciences, etc

The truth is that the BBCs decision to sacrifice an important part of its invaluable media entity reminds me of a similar incident to an old Egyptian radio program, running since 1934 and broadcast along with the General Program for more than 38 years.

Over the course of its long history the European Program played an unparalleled role in feeding Egyptian culture with tributaries of international culture in multiple languages, including English, French, German, Italian, Greek, Armenian.

It also played a similar role in introducing foreigners to Egypt, whether for residence or for the purpose of tourism.

This role has gradually expanded to also include foreigners in their countries thanks to the satellite broadcasting service of the European Program via Nilesat.

There is no doubt that those in charge of the European Program are making a great effort to develop it technically and administratively with all the special means available to them, following the departure of many of its bright broadcasters who built its glorious reputation through their work in radio, including dramas, media dialogue, and high cultural, political, social, artistic, educational and entertainment programs.

It is difficult if not impossible to find a single cultural area to which the European Program has not dedicated a program.

And if we look closely at the nature of the dedicated listeners of the European Program, we find that they represent various segments of the Egyptian society.

Some of them were familiar with foreign languages and were keen to learn from other cultures, and some of them have had little luck with it and strive to learn it and understand the rich conversations and meetings taking place, especially since the guests of the European Program were mostly senior thinkers, scholars, novelists, Western and Arab diplomats, such as Yahya Haqqi, Boutros Ghaly, Hussein Fawzy, etc.

Their intellectual repertoire was filled with rare dialogue and symbols of global and national thought, and a huge number of cultural performances of the works of Molire, Racine and Chekhov, whose characters were played by the presenters of the European Program themselves.

Thanks to these outstanding performance, their shows won the top prizes more than once in international competitions for the best radio works.

The philosophy of the European Program on the Egyptian radio was based mainly on enlightening Egyptians about other cultures and ways of thoughts, and introducing the outside world in turn to the glory of ancient Egypt and modern Egypts achievements, such as its pivotal role in combating extremist fundamentalist thought and its openness to global human culture.

This message is an integral part of national security.

However, despite the efforts of those in charge of the European Program and their unparalleled dedication to developing it, their aspiration to support its message, it seems that there are restrictions that stifle them restrictions imposed on them within the framework of a plan called the Broadcast Restructuring Plan, where the European Program and its enlightenment has no place.

Thus, let its fans provide for its shroud.

Originally posted here:
The European program and enlightenment of minds - Egypt Independent

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