Feature
Story /
Computer
Stoneheads & Tranquility
vs Perspectives, Tea Houses and Lodestones -
By Mark Soval
-----(Description
to drawing with spoon)
--The compass
an indispensable navigational tool, was another
significant gift from ancient China. While mining
ores and melting copper and iron, people chanced
upon a natural magnetite that attracted iron and
pointed fixedly north. After constant improvement
the round compass came into being.
-----
Dr. Needham
cites one of the first books to describe the
magnetic compass, Dream Pool Essays (1086) by Shen
Kuo in the Song Dynasty, about 100 years earlier
than its first record in Europe by Alexander Neekam
in 1190. The compass was introduced to the Arab
world and Europe during the Northern Song Dynasty
(960-1127).
-----
Before its
invention, navigators had to depend on the
positions of the sun, the moon and the polestar for
their bearings. The spread of the compass to Europe
opened the oceans of the world to travel and led to
the discovery of the New World. Thus, it was no
wonder that Francis Bacon, the English philosopher,
pointed out in his work.
-----
Bacon states,
"The New Instruments", that the invention of
printing, gunpowder and the compass reshaped the
world. In his words, they outstripped any empire,
any religious belief and any heavenly body in
exerting an impact on all humanity.
HOW
THE NEEDLE IS MAGNETIZED
-----With
a compass needle sitting on-top of an energized
lodestone, one of the many Chinese proverbs born in
the tea houses of China, read like this: "The words
peace and tranquility are worth a thousand pieces
of gold."
Just like then, when the
minds eye
was focused on the the compass and
the voice of the tea leaf reader . . .
Today's
minds eye is focused on the TV screen, and the
words and magical sounds of the computer! saying
"YES I CAN", "LOOK", "SMART", and when's the
"PAYOFF"
-----Your
inner self is the part of you that makes you aware
of your need for rest, relaxation, peace,
tranquility, a slower pace, and the requirement
that you are in need of a new perspective.
-----With
this in mind, you'll soon discover that you, like
most "computerized people", are more interested in
predicting their future, than changing it; and you
are very much receptive to the touches of your
inner self, and
in all probability, you
dream in color, which in turn, makes it easy for
you to morph those dreams into the real thing.
Thus, this is the time when the search for new
Horizons sets in.
-----
"These are the web viewers
we attract", says Josie Cory, publisher of TVInews.
They are the users in search of that inner
tranquility, that will make an impact on their
outer self. We've discovered that our Yes90.com
search engine is used as a respite from the hustle
and bustle of their everyday life. They are looking
for things that matter, things that will make a
difference in his/her life, things that will make
an impact on either a local or global
event.
THE
PAYOFF -----Television
International Magazine's YES90, tviNews, SoulFind,
Ddiaries, and LookRadio, have perspectives and
outlooks on life that are different. All news
headlines and global musical webcasts, feature
positive changes that leads to solving problems,
not making them. Disappointments Are Great, Follow
The Money, is the signatured motto for its
SmartSearch Webmasters. All of our web pages are
Contextualized. They theorize and philosophy, that
nothing changes unless some wild and woolly idea
comes along, that will help make the
difference.
-----"Most
great ideas are like sleeping volcanos", says Josie
Cory, publisher of TVInews. They come during times
of rest, relaxation, peace and tranquility. When
the great moment finally arrives, the thought
energies created during this tranquil period of
time, begin to stream out of the author, like the
molten lava flowing from the bellows of the
volcano, unearthing the energized lodestones, and
the many other type of precious stones full of
fortunes for mankind. Your mind exemplifies
this.
In people
terms, we call these New
DotCom ideas, "STONEHEADS".
-----
Of course, with a little luck while sipping
the right tea, your inner-self, or mind's eye, will
find the thing that will make the difference.
-----
By the way, it was a Teahouse, where the
compass, and the parts thereto were first
discovered, invented and commercially used. In
those days, way back when, the South China teahouse
fortune teller would help eliminate the forces that
held back ones self-determination and progress to
travel, with the help of a primitive compass
needle.
-----
When heated properly, the iron needle placed
on top of the energized lodestone by the fortune
dealer, would always point to fortunes that were
laying north of where the player was sitting. The
compass, invented in China, (1431), -- became an
object of divination for many. The terms, "North
Star", "Motherlode", "Shanghaied", and "Northwest
Passage", became part of the jargon for sailors and
miners seeking to make an impact on their
peers.
-----After
all, what launched many teahouse customers to
astronomically monetary success, was their mind's
eye that took something from nothing from the
compass needle, and a few suggestions from the
fortune cookie.
WHO ARE THESE
PEOPLE - THAT CAN TURN OFF
THEIR OUTER SELVES WHEN
NECESSARY
-----These
new DotCom Stonehead people have principles that
read like this:
-----1.
They are determined, stick-to-a-tive computer
users, and seem to give more than they take, and
they are always seeking the secrets to fame and
fortunes, no matter what. But more important --
they can flip and morph their minds to do anything,
or become anything they really want to become!
-----
They believe that, "Nothing In This World Is
Permanent" -- so . . . update it . . . With a new
name!
-----If
you are like them, you are probably more in touch
with your outer self, the active part of you that
ignores your inner needs and urges you to always
keep moving, always thinking, always striving as it
deals with problems and hassles. The pressure of
failure and success, completing projects and
errands, handling unfinished business and
accomplishments, doesn't phase you a bit.
-----
Are you exhausted yet? . . . I thought so --
you have caught on with the YES90 generation, 2090.
You know that the word "Yes" means Your Easy Search
to link yourself to the 20/20 world. The link to
see and confirm everything ever known to mankind,
the grave yard full of ideas put there, by other
"Stoneheads".
-----Getting
in touch with your inner self through meditation, a
simple compass and tea leaves, can help you to
balance activity with inactivity, so you can
rejuvenate and recharge the depleted energy of your
outer self.
HOW DO I
BECOME A DotCom STONEHEAD -- Do I
Meditate?
-----No,
you don't have to sit in a yoga position and chant
"OM" . . . Which is not a bad way to do it . . .
But most of us have no real meditation experience
in our everyday lives.
-----Meditation
needs only a peaceful, quiet place, sitting in a
comfortable position, with an object to dwell on. A
compass, a stone or a hand written place card with
the simple words, Love and Peace, will do the job.
If you can find one, use a lodestone. It'll do the
things that excites natural electromagnetic energy
-- to stimulate your thoughts.
MAKE IT A
SUGAR TO
TEA HOUSE RITUAL
-----Having
a still mind, one that is free of chatter and
mental activity, can put you in touch with your
inner self. If you can, SAMPLE tea leaves by
pouring boiling water over your lodestone with a
tea bag and cube of sugar in a coffee cup. A
compass, will over time, make you more aware of
your thoughts, perceptions and feelings of where
you've been and where you're going, yet you'll feel
totally at peace. Remember to have patience - use
"key words", while browsing Google or Yahoo /
YES90!
Part
02
/ Zheng
He (1371-1435), from the Yunnan province in China,
is given the credit for inventing the compass for
navigational purposes. He made seven
ocean.
COMPASS
DICTIONARY DESCRIPTION -----1.
a. A device used to determine geographic
direction,usually consisting of a magnetic needle
or needles horizontally mounted or suspended and
free to pivot until aligned with the magnetic field
of Earth. b. Another device, such as a radio
compass or a gyrocompass, used for determining
geographic direction.
-----
2. A V-shaped
device for describing circles or circular arcs and
for taking measurements,consisting of a pair of
rigid, end-hinged legs,one of which is equipped
with a pen, pencil, or other marker and the other
with a sharp point providing a pivot about which
the drawing leg is turned. Also called pair of
compasses.
-----
3 a. An
enclosing line or boundary; a circumference:
outside the compass of the fence. See Synonyms at
circumference. b. A restricted space or area: four
huge crates within the compass of the elevator. c.
Range or scope, as of understanding, perception, or
authority: "Lacking a coherent intellectual and
moral commitment, [he] was forced to find
his compass in personal experience" [Doris
Kearns Goodwin". See Synonyms at range. -- compass
-passed, -passing, -pass(es).
-----
1. To make a
circuit of: circle: The sailboat compassed the
island.
-----
2. To surround;
encircle. See Synonyms at surround.
-----
3. To
understand; comprehend.
-----
4. To succeed
in carrying out; accomplish. See Synonym at
reach.
-----
5. To scheme;
plot. -- compass adj. 1. Forming a curved
configuration. 2. Semicircular. Used of bow
windows. [Middle English compas, circle,
compass, from Old French, from compasser, to
measure, from Vulgar Latin *compassare, to pace off
: Latin com-, + Latin passus, step;
COMPASS
CARD. A freely
pivoting circular disk carrying the magnetic
needles of a compass and marked with the 32 points
of the compass and the 360 degrees of the circle.
lode. -----
The
metalliferous ore that fills a fissure in a rock
formation. b. A vain of mineral ore deposited
between clearly demarcated layers of rock. Also
called lead. 2. A rich source or supply.
[Middle English lode, way, load, from Old
English lad, way.
LOADSTONE
also LODE STONE DICTIONARY
DESCRIPTION
-----1.
A piece of magnetite that has magnetic properties
and attracts iron or steel. 2. One that attracts
strongly. Middle English lode, way, load, from Old
English lad, way.
LODESTAR
ALSO LOADSTAR
-----1..
A star, especially Polaris,that is used as a point
of reference. 2. A guiding principle,interest, or
ambition. [Middle English lode, way; see LODE +
sterre, star.
CHINESE
INVENTORS AND INVENTIONS COMPASS | MEDICINE |
GUNPOWDER | PRINTING | PAPER | EMBROIDERY |
SILK
People
of Zheng and Qin
Dynasty
-----The
compass may have been used during the 3rd century
B.C., or perhaps, if old tales have any validity,
even 300 years earlier. The earliest documentation
that comes from the use of the compass was found in
the 3rd century. "When the people of the State of
Zheng go out in search of jade, they carry a south
pointer with them so as not to lose their way in
the mountains."
-----
This quote was
one of the earliest documentation which tell the
use of a tool which they used to find their way of
getting back home and not getting lost in their
travels. The worlds first compass was first made in
China during the Qin dynasty (221-206 B.C.), by
balancing a piece of loadstone carved in the shape
of a laddle on a round, bronze plate.
-----
The first
person to use this tool was Zheng He (1371-1435), a
moslem from the Yunnan province. By order of the
emperor he made seven ocean voyages between 1405
and 1433.
THE
COMPASS AND THE MAGNETISM OF IRON
-----The
ability to magnetize iron by placing it near a
loadstone was known to ancient civilizations. But,
it was the Chinese who applied this principle of
magnetism to create the compass. The oldest picture
of a magnetic compass, from 200 BC, was using a
small spoon as the needle that was thrown down upon
a table that was engraved with the compass
points.
-----
These early
compasses were used in divination rather than in
navigation--"the board was used by geomancers to
detect the 'winds and waters' of the earth" (Gies
& Gies, 1994, p. 94). In the Han dynasty
(202
"South-pointer"
was used by travelers in China (the
earliest Chinese compasses, called south-pointers,
pointed south rather than north).
The
next significant development was the use of
a magnetized needle that was floated in a bowl of
water on a piece of wood or suspended by a silk
thread--these compasses were used by the 8th
century in China. And, Chinese sailors used the
compass for navigation by the 11th century. At this
time (12th through 15th centuries), China developed
the largest navy and was the greatest sea power in
the world.
-----
As just one
example of the size of this navy, Kublai Khan
attempted an invasion of Japan in 1281 with a fleet
of 4400 ships (McClellan & Dorn, 1999). It is
obvious that any technology that assisted in
navigation would be greatly appreciated. As with
other innovations, the compass was transferred to
Europe by the end of the 12th century. Whether it
was transferred by means of the Silk Road or
through Muslim sea traders is in debate.
Other
Compass Tidbits
-----By
the third century AD, Chinese scientists had
studied and learned much about magnetism in nature.
For example, they knew that iron ore, called
magnetite, tended to align itself in a North/South
position. Scientists learned to "make magnets" by
heating pieces of ore to red hot temperatures and
then cooling the pieces in a North/South position.
The magnet was then placed on a piece of reed and
floated in a bowl of water marked with directional
bearings. These first navigational compasses were
widely used on Chinese ships by the eleventh
century AD.
3.
Editor's Note
/ Which
way does it point -- -----According
to thirteenth-century philosophy, the compass
needle points towards the North star. Unlike all
other stars in the night sky, the north star
appears to be fixed. Thus, philosophers reasoned
that the lodestone obtained its "virtue" from this
star. Problems began to arise with this theory,
however, when people began to measure the property
of declination.
-----
It is often
said, although highly disputed, that Christopher
Columbus first discovered declination in the
European region during his first voyage to the West
Indies in 1492. Declination was old news in China
by this time however.
-----
The first
reported observation of magnetic declination
appears to have been made in about A.D. 720 by the
Buddhist astronomer I Hsing. It's too bad Alexander
didn't find out about declination along with the
compass. We know that the magnet loves the
lodestone, but we do not know whether the lodestone
also loves the magnet or is attracted to it against
its will.
Middle
East Arab physicist of the twelfth century. Earliest
records show a spoon shaped compass made of
lodestone or magnetite ore, referred to as a
"South-pointer" dating back to sometime during the
Han Dynasty (2nd century BCE to 2nd century
CE).
-----
The
spoon-shaped instrument was placed on a cast bronze
plate called a "heaven-plate" or diviner's board
that had the eight trigrams (Pa Gua) of the I
Ching, as well as the 24 directions (based on the
constellations), and the 28 lunar mansions (based
on the constellations dividing the Equator) .
-----
Often, the Big
Dipper (Great Bear) was drawn within the center
disc. The square symbolized earth and the circular
disc symbolized heaven. Upon these were inscribed
the azimuthal points relating to the
constellations. Its primary use was that of
geomancy (prognostication) to determine the best
location and time for such things as burials.
-----
In a culture
that placed extreme importance on reverence for
ancestors, this remained an important tool well
into the 19th century. Even in modern times there
are those who use this divination concepts of Feng
Shui (literally, of wind and water) for locating
buildings or fortuitous times and locations for
almost any enterprise.
-----
There is a
story that the first Chin emperor used the divining
board and compass in court to affirm his right to
the throne. Primarily, the compass was used for
geomancy for a long time before it was used for
navigation
Ancient
Chinese alchemists realized that the
magnetite ore would point towards a magnetic north.
Their understanding was not total, since they
thought that there were north pointers and south
pointers. "The lodestone follows a maternal
principle.
-----
The needle is
struck out from the iron (originally a stone) and
the nature of mother and son is that each
influences the other, and they communicate
together. The nature of the needle is to return to
its original completeness. As its body is very
light and straight, it must indicate straight
lines.
-----
It responds to
the Chhi by orientation, being central to the earth
and deviating in various directions. To the south
it points to the Hsuan-Yuan constellation, hence to
the Hsiu Hsing and therefore to the Hsiu Hsu in the
north, along the axis Ting-Kuei. The yearly
differences follow the elliptic, and all such
phenomena can be understood." (from Master Kuan's
Geomantic Instructor), 8th century CE.
By
the time of the T'ang dynasty (7 - 8th century CE)
--
-----Chinese
scholars had devised a way to magnetize iron
needles, by rubbing them with magnetite, and then
suspending them in water (early 11th century). They
also had observed that needles cooled from red heat
and held in the north-south orientation (the
earth's axis) would become magnetic.
-----
These more
refined needle compasses could then be floated in
water (wet compass), placed upon a pointed shaft
(dry compass) or suspended from a silk thread.
Consequently, they were much more useful for
navigation purposes since they were now much more
portable (and smaller).
During
the Sung dynasty (1000 CE) -- many
trading ships were then able to sail as far as
Saudi Arabia without getting lost. The plate was
converted to a bowl, and retained the markings of
the heaven's plate around its circumference, in a
simplified form. The inner circle had the eight
trigrams and the outer circle the 24 directions
(based on azimuth points).
///
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