Ritual, Legend, and Metaphor: Narratives of the Willow in Yuan Zaju

Narratives of willow trees in Yuan zaju 雜劇, or variety play, largely come in three types, namely, the ritual performance of shooting willows; the deliverance of willow spirits by Lü Dongbin, one of the Eight Immortals of Daoism; and the use of the word willow to refer to women. The willow shooting ritual depicted in Yuan zaju was highly reminiscent of the willow shooting ritual popular throughout the Song (960–1279), Liao (916–1125), Jin (1115–1234), and Yuan (1271–1368) dynasties, with its conceptual origins traceable to the ancient shamanic belief in the willow as a sacred tree prevalent among the Khitans and Jurchens who lived in what is now northeastern China. The legend of Lü Dongbin delivering a willow spirit to immortality is a recurring motif in Han Chinese folklore and Daoist hagiography, which also finds expression in the iconic image of Guanyin Pusa or Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara holding a willow branch with which they cure diseases for people and bring fulfillment to their wishes. The frequent use of “willow leaf-shaped eyebrows” (liumei 柳眉) and “willow-like waist” (liuyao 柳腰) in Yuan zaju as metaphorical references to women can be seen as a continuation of the great literary tradition of Shijing 詩經 (The Book of Songs) and also as a dramatic enactment of the fertility cult of the willow and women in Chinese folk religion. Evidence abounds that the narratives about the willow in Yuan zaju were not a new creation but an artistic manifestation of centuries-old folk belief and literary tradition.

Performance of Entrepreneurs in North Eastern Region

Entrepreneurship development through micro enterprise is an economic venture by which a large number of people can be changed within a short period of time especially from the point of view of employment generation. It provides tremendous opportunities for an entrepreneur to start a new creation. It helps to change the life of an entrepreneurs into a new direction. For changing the life of an entrepreneur, motivation is very essential, because without motivation no one can choose entrepreneurships as a profession. As we know it very well, that motivation is the ultimate key of starting a new venture in any trade. So it is very much important to motivate a person to understand his or her inner qualities to start a new profession for economic development. This study was conducted in the state of Assam. The nature of the study was both Exploratory and Descriptive. For selecting the representative sample for the study, simple random sampling method was adopted for selection of the districts. CRD analysis highlights the significance difference among all aspects of empowerment.

Transfiguracja – Piękna złośnica Jacques’a Rivette’a w świetle mimo-sekularnej myśli o filmie i mediach światłowodowych

The essay is an interpretation of the film by Jacques Rivette La Belle Noiseuse (1991) within the context of post-secular studies. The sketch is inspired primarily by the writings of Martin Heidegger and Jean-Luc Nancy, and it also corresponds with the Bible and biblical studies. The author describes the creative process shown in the film as an act of salvation which occurs between the painter and his model. The hiding of the resulting image is understood here in relation to the passion, cross and burial of Jesus which brings the hope for a liberated life and “the new creation”. The film is made in a very consistent way, which opens up the perspective of crossing the world of images, paintings and classical films (the world of stage), towards the art of mutual respect (the world of interface). Rivette’s work contains a multitude of relevant observations and indications regarding psychology, religion and culture, but it also reveals the possibility of a new way of thinking about film and the media, close to Nancy’s post-metaphysical thought.

A New Proposition of Business Model Innovation: Anteceding Managerial Competencies

Knowledge, competencies, and human capital are the cornerstones of business innovation. Generating innovation alone is not a guarantee of success in the market, but it is necessary to successfully manage innovation, which requires managers' expertise and specific competencies. The paper focused on analyzing the impact of several managerial competencies on improving the new proposition dimensions of the business model innovation. The business model innovation consists of new creation innovation, new proposition innovation, and value capture innovation. This paper analyses the new proposition innovation segment that relates to solutions for customers and how they are offered; it consists of the dimensions of new offerings, new customers and markets, new channels, and new customer relationships. The research was conducted among managers of companies from several industries, who evaluated their competencies, namely analytical and innovative, their ability to recognize opportunities, their tenacity, and passion for work, as well as new proposition innovation of business model innovation. The findings suggest that each of the managerial competencies is influential in some way but that they do not all affect each dimension of a new proposition of business model innovation. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Dimensi Eko-Eskatologis dalam Mitos Penciptaan pada Masyarakat Manggarai Nusa Tenggara Timur

One of the problems suspected to be faced by human is environmental problems. Whereas in various traditions generated by the ancestors, it encourages harmony between human life and nature through mythology, including the teachings of eschatology. The ecological crisis that occurred because of leaving the concept of eco-eschatology in religion and culture. This paper aims to find the ecoeschatological dimension in the creation myth of the Manggarai Community, NTT. The study used qualitative approach with ethnographic methods. Data were obtained through interviews with several key informants from several villages in Manggarai. The results of the study found two myths that have the eco-eschatological local wisdom, namely the myth of the origin of humans and the origin of plants. There are several eco-eschatological meanings in the creation myth, those are everything was created by Morin, all creations have an eschatological future, and there is continuity and discontinuity between the old creation in the world and the new creation in the eschatological world. These meanings bear some resemblance to the teachings in Catholic theology of creation. This finding contributes to the Church in efforts to sensitize the people in relation to the ecological crisis. In addition, local wisdom is also the basis for the environmental conservation movement.

DIGITAL PRESERVATION OF INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF JOGET DANCE MOVEMENT USING MOTION CAPTURE TECHNOLOGY

Culture and heritage play a major role in the Malay community in terms of linguistic, art craft, traditional ceremonies, music, activities, and performing arts. The Malay folk dances are most frequently described as a way of human expression through movement and traditional elements in storytelling, ritual, feeling manifestation, and conveying the Malay manner and customs as pillars of the Malay ethnic. Joget was created based on Branyo, a famous Portuguese folk dance. It is a hybrid of culture between the West and the East, reflecting heavily the Malay identity and characteristics as the core philosophy of choreography in the routine. The new creation of Malay dance has positively impacted Malay cultural activities. It has also threatened the original dance form which is being forgotten further from the philosophy. This paper was executed using a qualitative descriptive approach. Interviews and literature reviews were used to expose the rich diversity of two-element; joget and motion capture technology. Data verification, data compilation, data comparison, and triangulation are used as a form of data analysis. The results of the study found that the practice of motion capture has been massively used in digitising intangible assets for 3D application in the form of gaming, video interactive, education entertainment, and learning animation as a platform of education and training as a preservation and protection strategy. But motion capture technology has the potential to be explored as a medium in discovering a quality of trajectory micro visualization of joget dance movement and analyse the symbols or signs that can benefit to the young generation that provides a local sense of unity and belongingness that can help develop a new interest in enhancing cultural values and appreciation.

TRANSFORMATION OF TENGKULUK TANDUK WITH WEAVING TECHNIQUES

Tengkuluk is one of the traditional clothing equipment (head cover) of a Bundo Kanduang (biological mother) in the Minangkabau tribe. Currently tengkuluk is rarely used in everyday life, only used in traditional events or other official activities. This reality encourages the creation of this tengkuluk work to be carried out. The method of creating works used consists of three stages, namely experimentation, reflection, and formation. The result of the creation of this work shows that the tengkuluk made with woven techniques and pandan leaf material and decorated with Swarovski looks practical and flexible when used by mothers and teenagers in their daily lives. This new creation in the form of the Koto Gadang tengkuluk expresses the meaning of philosophical values, namely the responsibility of women when they have married.

Certain investigation on RC aircraft engine to identify the suitability of Methanol and Castor oil Alternative fuel

In the current age drones are broadly utilized for different applications in pretty much every field. Because of the disturbing expense of the glow fuel utilized in the RC motors, utilization of the equivalent includes a ton of capital. Adding to it, the current fuel brings about intermittent combustion is in demand of alternate fuel. This paper manages the investigation of existing fuel synthesis and discovering the cost required to dispose of the high capital included, so that considerably more tests and study utilizing the RC Engines 2.5 cc can be completed easily. Methanol and Castor oil Combination is considered as an alternate fuel. The approach includes testing of the fuel to decipher the substance parts and their individual pieces through a progression of tests. Followed by the study of possible additives to enhance the performance of the engine without actually altering the timing intervals. The new creation of the fuel showed up is blended in with extraordinary hardware and the equivalent is tried for essential fuel properties viz., Density, Flash point, Fire point, Calorific value, and so forth The productivity arrangement is made utilizing a pulley instrument and the equivalent is tried for both the energizes. Performance of the R/C aircraft engine was tested with existing glow fuel and the new blend. Results are compared and concluded that the designed blend is a potent alternate fuel for R/C aircraft engines. *Future scope: It can be further tested for its SFC and emission standards. The outcome shows that the new fuel is exceptionally cost productive and the essential substance properties are profoundly improved.

A Classical Physics Approach for Space Expansion: The Hubble Drift

Accelerating expansion of metric space AEMS is investigated with classical Newtonian mechanics. Relying on earlier positions, the results are analyzed to reveal what could be a new understanding of the theoretical framework of the subject. Notably, it is shown that space is physical; it comprises aggregated waveforms of the chemical elements and shares identical quantization, periodicity and mass-evolution with matter. Three plausible methods are identified for classical investigation of the Hubble effect, all three give same result, Ho= 49.5 km s-1Mpc. AEMS results from coupling of light’s 36.9o tangential component (vr=0.75rω) to periodic space, i.e., a component of the vacuum field’s e-m radiation couples to logarithmically decreasing distance scales, vr(E)/drE, to create an acceleration relative to space not time. Multiplicity of the Hubble constant aHo is traceable to corresponding multiplicity of universes nested within our universe. Mass ejection from a cosmic quantum envelope is the cosmic equivalence of radioactivity, it signals ageing and eventual disappearance of the host periodic envelope from visibility. Reality is an imperturbable (ideal) Steady-State, observations thought to invalidate this view are hugely misinterpreted, an explosion in or of spacetime marking the beginning of time could not conceivably sustain, over the aeons, an accelerating expansion of metric space; furthermore, the cosmic microwave background is the zero-point energy or vacuum radiation. The active galactic nucleus or black hole is not a singularity, it is a two-way valve that facilitates circulation of mass-energy matrices across the four phases or ref. frames of reality. There is no new creation of space or matter, only continuous recycling in line with NASA’s recent observation.

Discerning the essence and mission of the church in the midst of COVID-19

This article reflects on how the COVID-19 pandemic gives the church an opportunity to reconsider what the centre of God’s mission is for the congregation. It will engage on the implications of its reflections for public practical theology and congregational development. Spurred by an electronic opinion poll carried out by the author on six focus groups on WhatsApp platforms, averaging 200 participants each, during the lockdown days in Ghana, the question was put, “What one thing do you miss about church during the lock down period?” Majority of respondents mentioned communal fellowship (Konoinia) as the most missed aspect of congregational life. This article reflects on suggestions engendered by this observation and how it helps congregations to discern what makes them relevant to their members. Thus, helping congregations to envision the future, invoke dreams of a new creation where a return to normality will birth a world in which the church would take a new shape, presenting a fresh sense of missional community able to bring God to the people of our day.