Earth and Space News

Friday, July 24, 2020

Ellora Hindu Cave 13 Perhaps Acted as Abode of Ganesha and Wayfarers

Summary: Ellora Hindu Cave 13 in Maharashtra, India, perhaps accommodated pilgrim merchants, monks and traders whom the deity Ganesha accepted as god of wayfarers.

Vicinity of Ellora Hindu Cave 13 (center left of treee) provides visitors with restful view; Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013, 16:59: Udaykumar PR, CC BY 3.0 Unported, via Wikimedia Commons

Ellora Hindu Cave 13 in Maharashtra state, western peninsular India, perhaps acknowledged the deity Ganesha as the Hindu god of all wayfarers by accommodating pilgrim merchants, monks and traders through overnight arrangements.

The thirteenth cave from the southern entrance to the 1.24-mile- (2-kilometer-) long basalt cliff bearing Buddhist, Hindu and Jain cave temples perhaps boarded Shaivite Hindu believers. Ganesha (from Sanskrit गाणेश, "songmaster"), child of Shiva and Parvati, communicates cogent courses of action for conquering personal and professional chaos and correct choices at crossroads. Perhaps itinerant artisans under Rashtrakuta (from Sanskrit राष्ट्रकूट, "country chieftain") dynasts (753-982 C.E.) designed a rest destination for Hindu devotees desirous of more than one-day devotions.

Cave exteriors sometimes expose the exact employment of cave interiors even as the exterior wall of the first of 17 Ellora Hindu Caves no longer exists.

Shaivite (from Sanskrit शिव, "auspicious") Hindu (from Sanskrit सिन्धु, "stream") artisans, merchants, monks and traders perhaps filled Ellora Hindu Cave 13, whose patron fathered their patron.

The fertility and storm god of worlds destroyed between worlds recreated and his consort Parvati (from Sanskrit पर्वति, "stone") generated an epic-writing, obstacle-removing, path-finding, scripture-savvy god. Honoring Ganesha after other deities or not at all before heading out for personal and professional happenings always heralds harm, hindrances and horrors, never healthy happiness. An ignoble instance involves rakshasa (from Sanskrit राक्षस, "demoniacal") King Ravana (from Sanskrit रवण, "roaring") inveigling consort Parvati and fertility icon from Shiva without invoking Ganesha.

Vishnu (from Sanskrit विष्णु, "all-pervasive"), god of world preservation, joined with Ganesha so Ravana jettisoned the fertility icon in southern India and Parvati journeyed back home.

Ellora Hindu Cave 13 perhaps kept overnight, or longer, cave temple patrons and pilgrims whose kinetic lifestyles kindled knowing how, when, where, why to invoke Ganesha.

Elephant-headed, four-armed, yellow-skinned Ganesha, with one tusk and pot belly, perhaps looks not at all like the likeliest launch for living, or losing out on, life. His father made him mighty master of Ganadevata (from Sanskrit गणदेवता, "song deities") hosts on Mount Kailasa (from Sanskrit कैलास, "crystal") and personal and professional maneuvering. Twelve Adiya (from Sanskrit आदित्य, "solar") and 12 Sadhya (from Sanskrit साध्य, "accomplishable") Ganadevata hosts respectively nurture 12 annual solar phases and Vedic prayers and rites.

Visvadeva (from Sanskrit विश्वदेव, "all-pervading deities"), Vasu (from Sanskrit वसु, "sweet") and 49 Marut (from Sanskrit मरुत्, "breeze") deities respectively operationalize funeral offerings, natural phenomena and storms.

Ellora Hindu Cave 13 preserves no carved, painted, sculpted presence of the prepossessing progeny for whom Indra, Parvati, Shiva, perhaps Vishnu performed premier head transplant procedures.

Parvati's curse, sagely Kasyapa's (from Sanskrit कश्यप, "black-toothed") curse, Saturnian god Sani's (from Sanskrit शनि, "honor-giving") smoldering sight or Shiva's jealousy quit Ganesha of his head. Perhaps storm god Indra's (from Sanskrit इण्ड्र, "raindrop-possessing") elephant revived fruit-loving, rat-riding Ganesha, whose four hands retain club or goad, discus, shell and water-lily. Ganesha, not splendid war-god sibling Karttikeya (from Sanskrit कार्त्तिकेय, "Pleiades"), serves as spouse to stunning Buddhi (from Sanskrit बुद्धि, "perception") and Siddhi (from Sanskrit सिद्धि, "accomplishment").

Perhaps transient traders and tradesmen traipsed through Ellora Hi

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Vicinity of Ellora Hindu Cave 13 (center left of treee) provides visitors with restful view; Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013, 16:59: Udaykumar PR, CC BY 3.0 Unported, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ellora_Caves,_Maharashtra_-_panoramio_(135).jpg; Udaykumar PR, CC BY 3.0 Unported, via Panoramio at Internet Archive Wayback Machine @ https://web.archive.org/web/20161028003952/http://www.panoramio.com/photo/94512847

Ellora Hindu Cave 13 (right), located to the right of Ellora Hindu Cave 14 (left), is thought to have sheltered wayfarers; Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013, 17:00: Udaykumar PR, CC BY 3.0 Unported, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ellora_Caves,_Maharashtra_-_panoramio_(134).jpg; Udaykumar PR, CC BY 3.0 Unported, via Panoramio at Internet Archive Wayback Machine @ https://web.archive.org/web/20161102214617/http://www.panoramio.com/photo/94512862

For further information:

"About Ellora Caves." Yatra > Monuments of India > Monuments in Aurangabad. Copyrighted 2019.
Available @ https://www.yatra.com/indian-monuments/aurangabad/ellora-caves

Ajay Kulkarni @kulkey2015. 8 May 2019. "Ellora Caves, 6-8th cent, India a world heritage Always a different experience to witness the symphony of art, architecture, nature brought together by Summer high contrast light. Built during early kalachuries, rashtrakutas and Buddhist period. My recent visit to cave 19." Twitter.
Available @ https://twitter.com/kulkey2015/status/1125979081911128064

Anh-Huong, Nguyen; and Thich Nhat Hanh. 2019. Walking Meditation. Boulder CO: Sounds True.

Barrett, Douglas. "Wall Painting (Second to Sixteenth Century)." Pages 17-48. In: Douglas Barrett and Basil Gray. Paintings of India. Treasures of Asia. Distributed in the United States by The World Publishing Company, Cleveland OH. Geneva, Switzerland: Editions d'Art Albert Skira, 1963.

Berkson, Carmel. Ellora Concept and Style. First Edition, 1992. Second Edition, 2004. New Delhi, India: Abhinav Publications.
Available via Google Books @ https://books.google.com/books/about/Ellora_Concept_and_Style.html?id=tH7KRNqIin4C

Burgess, Jas. (James). Report on the Elura Cave Temples and the Brahmanical and Jain Caves of Western India. The Results of the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Seasons' Operations of the Archaeological Survey 1877-78, 1878-79, 1879-80. Supplementary to the Volume on "The Cave Temples of India." London [UK]: Trübner & Co., 1883.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.1544/page/n5/mode/1up

Cartwright, Mark. 8 March 2016. "Ellora Caves." Ancient History Encyclopedia > Article.
Available @ https://www.ancient.eu/article/874/ellora-caves/

"Cave 19." The Ellora Caves.
Available @ https://elloracaves.org/caves.php?cmd=search&words=&image_ID=&cave_ID=19&plan_floor=1

Cook, Sharell. Updated June 3, 2019. "Ajanta and Ellora Caves Essential Travel Guide." TripSavvy > Destinations > India > Maharashtra.
Available @ https://www.tripsavvy.com/ajanta-and-ellora-caves-travel-guide-1539340

Durdin-Robertson, Lawrence. 1976. The Goddesses of India, Tibet, China and Japan. With illustrations by Anna Durdin-Robertson. Huntington Castle, Clonegal, Enniscorthy, Eire: Cesara Publications.
Available @ http://www.fellowshipofisis.com/ldr_india_tibet_china_japan.pdf

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. 7 March 2019. "Ellora Caves." Encyclopædia Britannica > Geography & Travel > Historical Places. Chicago IL: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Available @ https://www.britannica.com/place/Ellora-Caves

"Elapura, aka: Elpāra; 6 Definition(s)." Wisdom Library.
Available @ https://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/elapura

"Ellora." Exotic Journeys International > India City Details.
Available @ http://www.ejiusa.com/india_city_details/Ellora.html

"Ellora Caves." Atlas Obscura > Places > Verul, India. Copyrighted 2020.
Available @ https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/ellora-caves

"Ellora Caves." UNESCO > Culture > World Heritage Centre > The List > World Heritage List.
Available @ https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/243/

Fergusson, James; and James Burgess. 1880. The Cave Temples of India. London [United Kingdom]: W.H. Allen @ Co., Trübner & Co. E. Stanford and W. Briggs.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/cavetemplesofind00ferguoft

Huntington, John C.; and Dina Bangdel. "Glossary M-Y." The Circle of Bliss: Buddhist Meditational Art.
Available @ https://huntingtonarchive.org/resources/downloads/COBGlossaryM-Y.pdf

"Interview with Shrikant Ganvir, Pune, January 2016." Sahapedia > Ellora Caves > Buddhist Caves of Ellora. Published 9 November 2016.
Available @ https://www.sahapedia.org/buddhist-caves-of-ellora

Ions, Veronica. 1967. Indian Mythology. London UK: Paul Hamlyn Limited.

Kannal, Deepak. 25 September 2017. "A Riddle Called Ellora." Sahapedia > Overview.
Available @ https://www.sahapedia.org/riddle-called-ellora

Lee, Eva. 17 February 2014. "Ellora Caves: Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain Coexistence." Eva Lee Studio.
Available @ http://www.evaleestudio.com/2014/02/12/ellora-caves-buddhist-hindu-and-jain-coexistence/

Malandra, Geri H. 1993. Unfolding a Mandala: The Buddhist Cave Temples at Ellora. Albany NY: State University of New York Press.
Available via Google Books @ https://books.google.com/books?id=MU44LPu3mbUC

Marriner, Derdriu. 17 July 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 25 Artisans Adorned Its Ceiling With Sun God Surya." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/07/ellora-hindu-cave-25-artisans-adorned.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 10 July 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 24 Aids Artists, Scientists Analyzing Water Features." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/07/ellora-hindu-cave-24-aids-artists.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 3 July 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 23 Accepts Shiva as Fertility God and as Trimurti." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/07/ellora-hindu-cave-23-accepts-shiva-as.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 26 June 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 22 Allows a Fertility Bull and a Fertility God." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/ellora-hindu-cave-22-allows-fertility.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 19 June 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 18 Appeals to Hearth and Sacrificial Fire God Agni." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/ellora-hindu-cave-18-appeals-to-hearth.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 12 June 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 17 Appreciates Gandharva Celestial Spirits and Shiva." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/ellora-hindu-cave-17-appreciates.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 5 June 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 26 Perhaps Asks for Auspicious Aid to Traders." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Availabled @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/ellora-hindu-cave-26-perhaps-asks-for.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 29 May 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 20 Adds the Last Adventure of Buffalo Demon Mahisha." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/05/ellora-hindu-cave-20-adds-last.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 22 May 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 21 Acclaims Shiva and Alludes to Jumna and Krishna." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/05/ellora-hindu-cave-21-acclaims-shiva-and.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 15 May 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 29 Assumes That Parvati and Shiva Adore One Another." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/05/ellora-hindu-cave-29-assumes-that.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 8 May 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 19 Appears Third Most Ancient Among Ellora Caves." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/05/ellora-hindu-cave-19-appears-third-most.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 1 May 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 27 Appears Second Most Ancient Among Ellora Caves." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/05/ellora-hindu-cave-27-appears-second.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 24 April 2020. "Ellora Hindu Cave 28 Accesses Waterfall Rainbows Over Ellora Caves." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/04/ellora-hindu-cave-28-accesses-waterfall.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 17 April 2020. "Ellora Caves Are Arranged as Buddhist, Hindu and Jain Cave Temples." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/04/ellora-caves-are-arranged-as-buddhist.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 10 April 2020. "Are Indian Ring-Necked Rose-Ringed Parakeets Still at Ellora Caves?" Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/04/are-indian-ring-necked-rose-ringed.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 3 April 2020. "Indian Three-Striped Palm Squirrels Augur the Hindu Ellora Caves." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/04/indian-three-striped-palm-squirrels.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 27 March 2020. "Ellora Caves Accept Walking Meditations Advocated by Thich Nhat Hanh." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/03/ellora-caves-accept-walking-meditations.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 20 March 2020. "Ellora Caves Ally With Ajanta Caves and Thich Nhat Hanh in Indra's Net." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/03/ellora-caves-ally-with-ajanta-caves-and.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 13 March 2020. "Ellora Caves Are Painted, Sculpted Temples Like and Unlike Ajanta Caves." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/03/ellora-caves-are-painted-sculpted.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 6 March 2020. "Ailing Ellora Caves Are Among Ameliorable World Heritage Centre Sites." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/03/ailing-ellora-caves-are-among.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 28 February 2020. "Schneider's Leaf-Nosed Bats Are Artful Annihilators at Ellora Caves." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/02/schneiders-leaf-nosed-bats-are-artful.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 21 February 2020. "Greater Indian False Vampire Bats Are Artful Assassins at Ellora Caves." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/02/greater-indian-false-vampire-bats-are.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 14 February 2020. "Are Grey Junglefowl Avoiding Artful Areas Around Ellora Caves? Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/02/are-grey-junglefowl-avoiding-artful.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 7 February 2020. "Blue Indian Peafowl No Longer Prettify the Artistic Ellora Caves." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/02/blue-indian-peafowl-no-longer-prettify.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 31 January 2020. "Ellora Caves Sanctuary Gardens Artfully Adjoin Ellora Caves Artistry." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/01/ellora-caves-sanctuary-gardens-artfully.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 24 January 2020. "Ellora Caves Teak Forest Trees Anchor Ellora Caves Rain Gardens." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/01/ellora-caves-teak-forest-trees-anchor.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 17 January 2020. "Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings and Gardens and Bhimbetka Sanctuary Gardens." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/01/ajanta-cave-wall-paintings-and-gardens.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 10 January 2020. "Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings, Ajanta Rain Gardens, Bhimbetka Rain Gardens." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/01/ajanta-cave-wall-paintings-ajanta-rain.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 31 May 2019. "Thich Nhat Hanh, Indra's Net at Bat Nha and Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/05/thich-nhat-hanh-indras-net-at-bat-nha.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 5 April 2019. "Thich Nhat Hanh, Tu Hieu Temple Walks and Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/04/thich-nhat-hanh-tu-hieu-temple-walks.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 29 March 2019. "Thich Nhat Hanh, Walking Meditations and Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/03/thich-nhat-hanh-walking-meditations-and.html

Narayana, Hari. 15 December 2012. "Ellora - Cave 13 and 14 (Ravana Ki Kai)." IndiaThatWas: A Legacy Unfolded.
Available @ http://indiathatwas.com/2012/12/ellora-cave-13-and-14-ravana-ki-kai/

Narayana, Hari. 25 November 2012. "The Ellora Caves - An Introduction." India That Was: A Legacy Unfolded.
Available @ http://indiathatwas.com/2012/11/the-ellora-caves-an-introduction/

Nhat Hanh, Thich. September/October 2009. "Indra's Net." Resurgence Issue 256: Exploring Consciousness.
Available @ https://www.resurgence.org/magazine/issue256-exploring-consciousness.html

Owen, Lisa N. 2012. Carving Devotion in the Jain Caves at Ellora. Leiden, The Netherlands; and Boston MA: Brill.
Available via Google Books @ https://books.google.com/books?id=vHK2WE8xAzYC

Padhye, A.D. (Anand Dhananjay); and H.V. Ghate. March 2002. "An Overview of Amphibian Fauna of Maharashtra State." Zoos' Print Journal 17(3): 735-740. Available online February 2002. DOI: 10.11609/JoTT.ZPJ.17.3.735-40.
Available via ResearchGate @ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/268399240_An_overview_of_amphibian_fauna_of_Maharashtra_State/link/54bde5560cf218da9391d0d8/download

Pereira, José. 1977. Monolithic Jinas: The Iconography of the Jain Temples of Ellora. Delhi, Varanasi and Patna, India: Motilal Banarsidass.
Available via Google Books @ https://books.google.com/books/about/Monolithic_Jinas.html?id=LMTgiygj4-oC

Poduval, Jayaram. 21 November 2018. "The Architecture of Ellora Caves." Sahapedia > Article.
Available @ https://www.sahapedia.org/the-architecture-of-ellora-caves

Rawson, Philip. "Eastern Art." Pages 256-299. In: David Piper. The Illustrated History of Art. London, England: Chancellor Press (Bounty Books), 2000.

Revire, Nicolas. 2011. "Some Reconsiderations of Pendant-Legged Buddha Images in the Dvāravatī Artistic Tradition." Bulletin of the Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association 31: 37-49.
Available via Academia @ https://www.academia.edu/5735422/Some_Reconsiderations_on_Pendant-Legged_Buddha_Images_in_the_Dv%C4%81ravat%C4%AB_Artistic_Tradition

Singh, Rajesh Kumar. 26 November 2019. "Obituary: Walter M. Spink (Feb 16, 1928 - Nov 24, 2019)." Caves of India > Walter Spink.
Available @ https://cavesofindia.org/2019/11/26/prof-spink/

Spink, Walter M. 1967. Ajanta to Ellora. Mumbai, India: Marg Publications.

Spink, Walter M. 1967. "Ellora's Earliest Phase." Off Print of the Bulletin of the American Academy of Benares 1: 11-22.

"Tibetan + Sanskrit Words." Madhyamaka Introduction to the Middle Way > Study.
Available @ https://madhyamaka.com/study/tibetan-sanskrit/

Wednesday, July 22, 2020

Fourth Moonwalker Alan Bean Commanded Skylab 3 July to September 1973

Summary: Fourth moonwalker Alan Bean commanded Skylab 3 July to September 1973 for NASA’s second manned mission to the first United States space station.

Apollo 9 Lunar Module Pilot Russell “Rusty” Schweikart (back to camera) and another training officer (left background) wear surgical masks as Skylab 3 mission’s scientist-pilot Owen Garriott (center), with mock-up of trunnion plug plate, Commander Alan Bean (center background) and mission pilot Jack Lousma (center right) participate in prelaunch training at Johnson Space Center, Houston, Harris County, Southeast Texas; Saturday, June 30, 1973: Generally not subject to copyright in the United States; may use this material for educational or informational purposes, including photo collections, textbooks, public exhibits, computer graphical simulations and Internet Web pages; general permission extends to personal Web pages, via NASA Image and Video Library

Fourth moonwalker Alan Bean commanded Skylab 3 July to September 1973 for NASA’s second manned mission to Skylab, the first United States space station.

The Skylab 3 mission launched Saturday, July 28, 1973, from Cape Kennedy (Cape Canaveral since Oct. 9, 1973) in east central Florida at 11:10:50 Coordinated Universal Time (7:10 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time). The Saturn IB launch vehicle carried the crew and mission paraphernalia in Apollo CSM (command and service module) 117.

Alan LaVern Bean (March 15, 1932-May 26, 2018) headed the mission’s three-astronaut crew as commander. The mission marked the first spaceflights for scientist-pilot Owen Kay Garriott (Nov. 22, 1930-April 15, 2019) and mission pilot Jack Robert Lousma (born Feb. 29, 1936).

CSM 117 sheltered a multi-species cargo. The three astronauts shared the module with Anita and Arabella, a pair of common cross spiders (Araneus diadematus); six pocket mice (Perognathus longimembris); 180 fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) pupae; two mummichog minnows (Fundular heteroclitus); and 50 minnow fish eggs.

Anita and Arabella participated in the mission’s experiment on web formation in zero gravity. Their presence in Skylab 3 marked the first arachnid (Ancient Greek: ἀράχνη, arákhnē, “spider”) journey to space. Arabella debuted the first made-in-space web during Skylab 3. Anita is famed as the second spider to spun a web in space.

The NASA-conducted experiment was proposed by Judith S. Miles of Lexington, Massachusetts. The high schooler qualified as one of 25 national finalists in NASA's Skylab Student Project competition.

The pocket mice and fruit flies (also known as vinegar gnats) were involved in circadian rhythm experiments. The mission’s Circadian Periodicity Experiment (CPE) unit included separate housings for the pocket mice and the fruit flies. NASA Ames Research Center’s 1995 report, Life Into Space, acknowledged: “Unfortunately, about 30 hours after launch a power failure occurred and resulted in the loss of both experiments” (page 80).

The two mummichog minnows boarded the Skylab 3 mission as the first fish in space. The two minnows learned to orientate themselves in the unfamiliar environment of weightlessness.

The space fish population burgeoned to 48 during the mission with the hatching of all but two eggs. The fish fry emerged from their eggs with innate orientations to their habitat in space.

Three spacewalks, known as extravehicular activity (EVA), took place during the Skylab 3 mission. Astronauts Garriott and Lousma experienced their first spacewalk during the mission’s first extravehicular activity (EVA 1), which began Monday, Aug. 6, 1973, at 17:30 UTC (1:30 p.m. EDT). EVA 1 ended six hours 31 minutes later, Tuesday, Aug. 7, at 00:01 UTC (8:01 p.m. EDT, Monday, Aug. 6).

After their fledgling spacewalk, the duo became veterans in their outing for the mission’s second spacewalk (EVA 2). Their second spacewalk began Friday, Aug. 24, at 16:24 UTC (12:24 p.m. EDT). They completed the spacewalk four hours 31 minutes later, at 20:55 UTC (4:55 p.m. EDT).

Scientist-pilot Garriott claimed participation in all three of the mission’s spacewalks. He joined Commander Bean for EVA 3, which began Saturday, Sept. 22, at 11:18 UTC (7:18 a.m. EDT) and ended two hours 41 minutes later, at 13:59 UTC (9:59 a.m. EDT). With EVA 3, the Skylab 3 mission’s outside time totaled 13 hours 43 minutes.

The Skylab 3 mission’s third spacewalk numbered as Commander Bean’s third and last career extravehicular activity. He had conducted his first two extravehicular activities on the surface of the moon as the Lunar Module Pilot on Apollo 12. The Apollo 12 mission represented the United States Apollo program’s sixth manned flight and succeeded Apollo 11 as the second Apollo mission to land on Earth’s moon. With his first lunar walk, Nov. 19, 1969, Bean became the fourth moonwalker. The Apollo 12 mission’s commander, Charles “Pete” Conrad Jr. (June 2, 1930-July 8, 1999), preceded him onto the lunar surface.

The Skylab 3 mission undocked from the space station Tuesday, Sept. 25, at 11:16:42 UTC (7:16 a.m. EDT). CSM 117 splashed down in the northeastern Pacific Ocean, approximately 300 kilometers (186.4 miles) southwest of San Diego, southwestern California. Splashdown happened at 22:19:51 UTC (6:19 p.m. EDT), 11 hours 3 minutes 9 seconds after CSM 117’s undocking. Retrieval of the command module and the crew by the recovery vessel, the USS New Orleans, occurred 42 minutes after splashdown, according to the Skylab Mission Evaluation Team's Skylab Mission Report Second Visit (1974: 2-2).

The takeaways for fourth moonwalker Alan Bean, who commanded Skylab 3 July to September 1973, are that his Skylab 3 spacewalk numbered as his third and last career extravehicular activity and that, under his command, the first fish and spiders reached and lived in space and also the first made-in-space web was spun.

Skylab space station close-up view from Skylab 3 Command and Service Module (CSM) prior to docking; photographed with hand-held 70mm Hasselbad camera using a 100mm lens and SO-368 medium speed Ektachrome film; July 28, 1973: Generally not subject to copyright in the United States; may use this material for educational or informational purposes, including photo collections, textbooks, public exhibits, computer graphical simulations and Internet Web pages; general permission extends to personal Web pages, via NASA Image and Video Library

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Skylab space station close-up view from Skylab 3 Command and Service Module (CSM) prior to docking; photographed with hand-held 70mm Hasselbad camera using a 100mm lens and SO-368 medium speed Ektachrome film; Saturday, July 28, 1973: Generally not subject to copyright in the United States; may use this material for educational or informational purposes, including photo collections, textbooks, public exhibits, computer graphical simulations and Internet Web pages; general permission extends to personal Web pages, via NASA Image and Video Library @ https://images.nasa.gov/details-sl3-114-1683

For further information:

Burgess, Colin; and Chris Dubbs. Animals in Space: From Research Rockets to the Space Shuttle. Springer-Praxis Books in Space Exploration. Chichester UK: Praxis Publishing Ltd., 2007.

Caswell, Kurt. Laika’s Window: The Legacy of a Soviet Space Dog. San Antonio TX: Trinity University Press, 2018.

Compton, W. (William) David; and Charles D. Benson. Living and Working in Space: A History of Skylab. The NASA History Series. NASA SP-4208. Washington DC: National Aeronautics and Space Administration Scientific and Technical Information Branch, 1983.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/nasa_techdoc_19840017669/page/n4

Day, Dwayne. “Outpost in the Sky: Skylab, the NASA Mission Reports.” The Space Review. June 26, 2017.
Available @ http://www.thespacereview.com/article/3270/1

Hitt, David; Owen Garriott; and Joe Kerwin. Homesteading Space: The Skylab Story. Featuring the In-Flight Diary of Alan Bean. Lincoln NE: University of Nebraska Press, 2008.
Available via Google Books @ https://books.google.com/books/about/Homesteading_Space.html?id=sR5Cm_zeIekC

Johnson, David Samuel. “The First Fish in Orbit.” Scientific American > Guest Blog. Dec. 22, 2016.
Available @ https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/the-first-fish-in-orbit/

Lindberg, R. (Robert) G.; and P. (Page ) Hayden. Research on the Properties of Circadian Systems Amenable to Study in Space. NASA CR 137,523. Hawthrone [sic] CA: Northrop Research and Technology Center Corporate Laboratories, June 1974.
Available via NASA NTRS (NASA Technical Reporters Server) @ https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19740022376.pdf

Marriner, Derdriu. “Arabella and Anita Spun First Space Webs in August 1973 at Skylab.” Earth and Space News. Wednesday, July 31, 2013.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2013/07/arabella-and-anita-spun-first-space.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Skylab 3 Astronaut Wives Pranked Spouses With Unofficial Mission Patch." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, July 15, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/07/skylab-3-astronaut-wives-pranked.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Skylab 3 Mission Patch Emphasized Earth, Sun and Medical Themes." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, July 8, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/07/skylab-3-mission-patch-emphasized-earth.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Three African Postage Stamps Honored Astrocat Félicette’s 1963 Flight.” Earth and Space News. Wednesday, June 5, 2019.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/06/three-african-postage-stamps-honored.html

NASA Ames Research Center. “Chronobiology of Pocket Mice (S071).” NASA Life Sciences Data Archive > Mission > Skylab.
Available via NASA Life Sciences Data Archive @ https://lsda.jsc.nasa.gov/Experiment/exper/226

NASA Ames Research Center. “Circadian Rhythm in Vinegar Gnats (S072).” NASA Life Sciences Data Archive > Mission > Skylab.
Available via NASA Life Sciences Data Archive @ https://lsda.jsc.nasa.gov/Experiment/exper/227

NASA Content Administrator. “The Skylab Crewed Missions.” NASA > Missions > All Missions A-Z > S > Skylab. May 6, 2013. Last updated Aug. 7, 2017.
Available @ https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/skylab/missions/skylab_manned.html

NASA George C. Marshall Space Flight Center. “C. Zoology. 1. ED52 -- Web Formation.” MSFC Skylab Student Project Report: 38-46. NASA Technical Memorandum TM X-64866. NASA Skylab Program Office. August 1974.
Available @ https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19740025164.pdf

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Public Affairs Office. “Skylab Operations Summary.” NASA/Kennedy Space Center > Space Flight Archives > Skylab > Program Overview.
Available @ https://science.ksc.nasa.gov/history/skylab/skylab-operations.txt

Newkirk, Roland W.; Ivan D. Ertel; and Courtney G. Brooks. Skylab: A Chronology. The NASA History Series. NASA SP-4011. Washington DC: National Aeronautics and Space Administration Scientific and Technical Information Branch, 1977.
Available via NASA History @ https://history.nasa.gov/SP-4011/contents.htm
Available via NASA NTRS (NASA Technical Reporters Server) @ https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19780017172.pdf

Skylab Mission Evaluation Team. Skylab Mission Report Second Visit. JSC-08662. Houston TX: National Aeronautics and Space Administration Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, January 1974.
Available via NASA NTRS (NASA Technical Reporters Server) @ https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19740011377.pdf

Souza, Kenneth; Robert Hogan; and Rodney Ballard, eds. “4. Programs, Missions, and Payloads -- Skylab 3.” Life Into Space: Space Life Sciences Experiments NASA Ames Research Center 1965-1990: 79-81. Moffett Field CA: NASA Ames Research Center, 1995.
Available via Internet Archive Wayback Machine @ https://web.archive.org/web/20090321010411/http://lis.arc.nasa.gov/lis/Programs/Skylab/Skylab_3/Skylab_3.html
Available via NASA @ https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/life_into_space_vol1.pdf

Steven-Boniecki, Dwight, ed. Skylab 3: The NASA Mission Reports. Apogee Space Books (Book 92). Burlington, Canada: Apogee Books, 2016.

Monday, July 20, 2020

La Bohème Was Franco Zeffirelli’s Fifth Met Opera Production

Summary: Puccini’s La Bohème was Franco Zeffirelli’s fifth Met Opera production, which debuted during the 1981-1982 Met Opera season.

Italian director Franco Zeffirelli with José Carreras as Rodolfo and Teresa Stratas as Mimì in his new production of Puccini's La Bohème, which debuted in Met Opera's 1981-1982 season; Zeffirelli appreciated the unique combination of talents ("combinazione unica di talenti") that Carreras and Stratas brought to their roles; he concluded: "dove avrei potuto trovare una coppia più perfetta di quella per far rivivere la meravigliosa storia di Mimì e di Rodolfo?" ("where could I find a more perfect match than that to bring to life the wonderful story of Mimì and Rodolfo?"): Fondazione Franco Zeffirelli Onlus, via Facebook March 3, 2019

Giacomo Puccini’s La Bohème was Franco Zeffirelli’s fourth Met Opera production, which debuted in the 1981-1982 Met Opera season and which has remained in the opera house’s regularly performed repertory for almost four decades.

The Metropolitan Opera debuted Franco Zeffirelli’s new production of La Bohème on Monday, Dec. 14, 1981, in the opera house’s 823rd performance of the poignant Parisian opera by Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924). The new production received 20 performances in the 1981-1982 Met Opera season.

Involvement by Franco Zeffirelli (Feb. 12, 1923-June 15, 2019) in La Bohème marked his first production of a Puccini opera at the Metropolitan Opera. His next two collaborations with the opera house added two more popular Puccini operas to his Met Opera portfolio. Zeffirelli produced Tosca in the 1984-1985 season and Turandot in the 1986-1987 season.

Zeffirelli designed the sets for his new staging of La Bohème. His production team comprised Peter J. Hall as costume designer and Gil Wechsler as lighting designer. Hall had made his Metropolitan Opera debut in the 1971-1972 season premiere of Zeffirelli’s new production of Otello by 19th-century Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901). Wechsler had made his Metropolitan Opera debut Jan. 18, 1977, in the opera company’s 74th performance of Le Prophète by 19th-century Prussian-Jewish opera composer Giacomo Meyerbeer (Sept. 5, 1791-May 2, 1864).

James Levine (born June 23, 1943) conducted the new production’s season premiere and 16 of the season’s 20 performances. The Metropolitan Opera’s second music director had made his Metropolitan Opera debut June 5, 1971, in the opera company’s 539 performance of Puccini’s Tosca.

Jeffrey Tate conducted three of the opera’s eight performances in February 1982. The English conductor had made his Metropolitan Opera debut Dec. 26, 1980, in the opera company’s 11th performance of Lulu by Austrian composer Alban Berg (Feb. 9, 1885-Dec. 24, 1935).

Teresa Stratas (born May 26, 1938) sang Mimì opposite José Carreras (born Dec. 5, 1946) as Rodolfo for the production’s season premiere. The Canadian operatic soprano had made her Metropolitan Opera debut Oct. 28, 1959, as Poussette in the opera company’s 187th performance of Manon by French Romantic Era composer Jules Massenet (May 12, 1842-Aug. 13, 1912). The Catalan operatic lyric tenor had made his Metropolitan Opera debut Nov. 18, 1974, as Cavaradossi in the opera company’s 576th performance of Puccini’s Tosca.

The Metropolitan Opera has staged 35 revivals in the 38 seasons since Franco Zeffirelli debuted his new production of Puccini’s La Bohème: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera, via Facebook June 22, 2019

The Metropolitan Opera has staged revivals in 35 of the 38 seasons since the 1981-1982 season’s debut of Zeffirelli’s La Bohème. The production has skipped only three seasons in the interim.

The first three revivals were staged successively after the production's Dec. 14, 1981, debut, in seasons 1982-1983 through 1984-1985. No revival was offered in the 1985-1986 season.

The fourth through 14th revivals took place, for 11 successive seasons, in seasons 1986-1987 through 1996-1997. No revival was offered in the 1997-1998 season.

The 15th through 28th revivals were staged, over 14 successive seasons, in seasons 1998-1999 through 2011-2012. No revival was offered in the 2012-2013 season.

The Metropolitan Opera launched the current, fourth set of successive revivals in the 2013-2014 season. The 2019-2020 season’s revival marks the seventh successive revival since the 2013-2014 season and the 35th revival since the production’s 1981-1982 season debut.

La Bohème’s closing night in the 2019-2020 Met Opera season occurred Thursday, May 7. Closing night numbered as the season’s 16th performance and as the 525th performance of Zeffirelli’s production.

Puccini’s La Bohème received its Metropolitan Opera premiere on Nov. 9, 1900. The opera received 15 performances in the 1900-1901 season. From its premiere in 1900 through the 2019-2020 season’s closing night, La Bohème has tallied 1,347 performances. Thus far, Zeffirelli’s production accounts for 39 percent of the opera house’s performances of La Bohème.

The takeaways for La Bohème as Franco Zeffirelli’s fifth Met Opera production are that the Italian designer and director’s staging marks his first involvement in a Puccini opera at the Metropolitan Opera and that Zeffirelli’s La Bohème has tallied 525 performances and experienced 35 revivals in the 38 years since its 1981-1982 season debut.

Rosalind Elias sang in the Met Opera debuts of Zeffirelli’s stagings of Falstaff and Antony and Cleopatra; Paul Plishka sang in debuts of Zeffirelli’s productions of Otello, Turandot and Aida; Angela Gheorghiu sang in the debut of Zeffirelli's Carmen production; Justino Díaz sang in the debut of Zeffirelli’s staging of Antony and Cleopatra: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera, via Facebook June 15, 2019

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Rosalind Elias sang in the Met Opera debuts of Zeffirelli’s stagings of Falstaff and Antony and Cleopatra; Paul Plishka sang in debuts of Zeffirelli’s productions of Otello, Turandot and Aida; Angela Gheorgiu sang in the debut of Zeffirelli's Carmen production; Justino Díaz sang in the debut of Zeffirelli’s staging of Antony and Cleopatra: The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera, via Facebook June 15, 2019, @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532/10162064567055533/

For further information:

“Debut: Jeffrey Tate.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 263130 Lulu {11) Metropolitan Opera House: 12/26/1980.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=263130

“Debut: José Carreras.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 239630 Tosca {576) Metropolitan Opera House: 11/18/1974.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=239630

“Debut: Peter J. Hall.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 228890 New Production Otello {184) Metropolitan Opera House: 03/25/1972.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=228890

“Debut: Raimund Herincx, Gil Wechsler, Stuart Sebastian.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 248030 Le Prophète {74) Metropolitan Opera House: 01/18/1977.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=248030

“Debuts: Luigi Alva, Leonard Bernstein, Franco Zeffirelli.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 197440 New Production Falstaff {67} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/6/1964.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=197440

“Debuts: Peter Glossop, James Levine.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 225710 Tosca {539} Metropolitan Opera House: 06/05/1971.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=225710

“Debuts: Teresa Stratas, Joan Wall.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 183010 Manon {187} Metropolitan Opera House: 10/28/1959.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=183010

Fondazione Franco Zeffirelli Onlus. "New York, Metropolitan Opera House, 1981. A quasi 20 anni dal successo scaligero, va in scena la Bohème diretta da Zeffirelli con Teresa Stratas e José Carreras. 'Soltanto la graziosa, minuta e vibrante Teresa Stratas, poteva affrontare e vincere questa difficile battaglia. E solo José Carreras poteva offrire un aspetto così forte e giovanile da saperle dare sicurezza e speranza. Era una combinazione unica di talenti: dove avrei potuto trovare una coppia più perfetta di quella per far rivivere la meravigliosa storia di Mimì e di Rodolfo?' FZ. Giovedì 7 marzo, L'Archivio Mai Visto: la Bohème di Zeffirelli a cura di Caterina d'Amico https://bit.ly/2XjNq1l." Facebook. March 3, 2019.
Available via Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/fondazionefrancozeffirelli/photos/pb.100063789780327.-2207520000./825411367794343/
Available via Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/fondazionefrancozeffirelli/posts/825411367794343/

Fondazione Franco Zeffirelli Onlus @fondazionefrancozeffirelli. “New York, Metropolitan Opera House, 1981. A quasi 20 anni dal successo scaligero, va in scena la Bohème diretta da Zeffirelli con Teresa Stratas e José Carreras. 'Soltanto la graziosa, minuta e vibrante Teresa Stratas, poteva affrontare e vincere questa difficile battaglia. E solo José Carreras poteva offrire un aspetto così forte e giovanile da saperle dare sicurezza e speranza. Era una combinazione unica di talenti: dove avrei potuto trovare una coppia più perfetta di quella per far rivivere la meravigliosa storia di Mimì e di Rodolfo?' FZ Giovedì 7 marzo, L'Archivio Mai Visto: la Bohème di Zeffirelli a cura di Caterina d'Amico ➡ https://bit.ly/2XjNq1l.” Facebook. March 3, 2019.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/fondazionefrancozeffirelli/photos/a.521465231522293/825411367794343/

Marriner, Derdriu. "Andrea Velis Made Beppe Role Debut at Met Opera in Zeffirelli’s Cav Pag." Earth and Space News. Monday, July 6, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/07/andrea-velis-made-beppe-role-debut-at.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Antony and Cleopatra Was Franco Zeffirelli’s Second Met Opera Production." Earth and Space News. Monday, June 15, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/antony-and-cleopatra-was-franco.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Cav Pag Was Franco Zeffirelli’s Third Met Opera Production.” Earth and Space News. Monday, June 22, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/cav-pag-was-franco-zeffirellis-third.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Franco Zeffirelli Made His Met Opera Debut in Staging Verdi’s Falstaff." Earth and Space News. Monday, June 1, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/franco-zeffirelli-made-his-met-opera.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Grace Bumbry Made Santuzza Role Debut at Met Opera in Zeffirelli’s Cav Pag." Earth and Space News. Monday, June 29, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/grace-bumbry-made-santuzza-role-debut.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “La Bohème Is Feb. 24, 2018, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast.” Earth and Space News. Monday, Feb. 19, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/02/la-boheme-is-feb-24-2018-met-opera.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “La Bohème Is the Jan. 25, 2020, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast.” Earth and Space News. Monday, Jan. 20, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/01/la-boheme-is-jan-25-2020-met-opera.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Luigi Alva Made Met Opera Debut in Zeffirelli’s Falstaff Production." Earth and Space News. Monday, June 8, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/06/luigi-alva-made-met-opera-debut-in.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Only Two of 11 Zeffirelli Productions Are Still Revived at Met Opera." Earth and Space News. Monday, May 25, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/05/only-two-of-11-zeffirelli-productions.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Otello Was Franco Zeffirelli’s Fourth Met Opera Production.” Earth and Space News. Monday, July 13, 2020.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2020/07/otello-was-franco-zeffirellis-fourth.html

The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera. “Legendary director Franco Zeffirelli (1923–2019), who created 11 Met productions between 1964 and 1998, worked with many of opera’s greatest artists, from Leontyne Price to Leonard Bernstein to Plácido Domingo. Look back on his unparalleled career with this collection of snapshots of him at work. Photo: In rehearsal with Teresa Stratas and José Carreras for the now-legendary 1981 staging of Puccini's La Bohème Photo courtesy of Met Archives.” Facebook. June 22, 2019.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532/10162094339225533/

The Metropolitan Opera @MetOpera. “The Met mourns the loss of director Franco Zeffirelli, one of the great visionaries in our company's history. From Falstaff in 1964 to La Traviata in 1998, he created 11 Met productions in all, and his classic La Bohème, which premiered in 1981, remains the most-performed staging in the company's history. We extend our condolences to his family and friends. Photo: A tribute to Zeffirelli, center, on the Met stage between acts of a 2008 performance of his beloved production of La Bohème. With him, from left to right, are Rosalind Elias, Paul Plishka, Angela Gheorghiu, Justino Díaz, and Peter Gelb. Photo by Marty Sohl / Met Opera.” Facebook. June 15, 2019.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/MetOpera/photos/a.134969600532/10162064567055533/

“Metropolitan Opera Premiere: La Bohème.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 25000 Metropolitan Opera Premiere La Bohème {1} Lucia di Lammermoor: Mad Scene. Los Angeles, California: 11/9/1900.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=25000

“New Production: La Bohème.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 266920 New Production La Bohème {823} Metropolitan Opera House: 12/14/1981.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=266920

“Opening Night {106}.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 302010 La Bohème {953} Metropolitan Opera House: 09/24/1990.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=302010

Plotkin, Fred. “Remembering Franco Zeffirelli (1923-2019).” WQXR > Operavore. June 17, 2019.
Available @ https://www.wqxr.org/story/remembering-franco-zeffirelli-19232019/

Friday, July 17, 2020

Ellora Hindu Cave 25 Artisans Adorned Its Ceiling with Sun God Surya

Summary: Ellora Hindu Cave 25 in Maharashtra, India, attests to anciently artistic architecture in a cave temple whose ceiling arrangement accents sun god Surya.

carving of Sun God Surya in ceiling of Ellora Hindu Cave 25; Monday, Sep. 12, 2016, 15:07: Ms Sarah Welch, CC BY SA 4.0 International, via Wikimedia Commons

Ellora Hindu Cave 25 in Maharashtra state, western peninsular India, accommodates heavenward adoration through the architectural artistry of the ancient sun god Surya appearing in the ceiling arrangement of its cave temple.

Itinerant artisans, merchants and monks built Ellora Hindu Cave 25 because or before they built Ellora Buddhist Cave 10 in the fifth through 13th-centuries Ellora Caves. They constructed the two cave temples with a comparable concern for centering adorational and meditational concentration upon ceilings respectively carved like the sun and like wood. They drew upon a duo from the ancient deities that did not dismay religiously tolerant Rashtrakuta (from Sanskrit राष्ट्रकूट, "country chieftain") dynasts (753-982 C.E.).

Ellora Hindu Cave 25 emphasizes Surya (from Sanskrit सूर्य, "sun"), sage Kasyapa's (from Sanskrit कश्यप, "black-toothed") and Aditi's (from Sanskrit अदिति, "boundless") son and Visvakarma's son-in-law.

The beam-like, rib-looking, wood-styled stone Ellora Buddhist Cave 10 ceiling fosters ancient Visvakarma (from Sanskrit विश्वकर्म, "omnificent"), English Carpenter's Hut and local Sutar ka Jhopda names.

Ellora Hindu Cave 25 gets graven into its basalt ceiling Surya, husband of Saranyu (from Sanskrit शरण्यु, "protector") and brother-in-law of Trisiras (from Sanskrit त्रिशिर, "three-pointed"). Saranyu had the twins Yama (from Sanskrit यम, "twinborn"), King of the Dead; and Yami (from Sanskrit यामि, "sister"), Yamuna (from Sanskrit यमुना, "twin") River goddess. She installed as identical imposter Chhaya (from Sanskrit छाया, "shadow"), instead of her twin sister, while she itinerated as the mare Aswini (from Sanskrit अश्विनी, "horse").

Descending bloodlines and, from one-eighth of superfluous solar brilliance, divine weaponry mythologically join Surya of Ellora Hindu Cave 25 and Visvakarma of Ellora Buddhist Cave 10.

Surya knew nothing about Saranyu keeping herself away until Yama kicked Chhaya, mother with Surya of the rishi Manu (from Sanskrit ऋषि, "saint" and मनु, "thinking").

The handmaiden launched curses that left Saranyu's son with a leg laden with sores and worms since only a biological mother's curses leave a child unharmed. Yama thenceforth moved on one healthy foot and one shriveled foot even though one of Surya's roosters managed to cure the sores and remove the worms. Surya nestled as a horse into field and forest niches with Saranyu as a mare and with their offspring, twin horsemen named Aswin, subsequently the gods' physicians.

Visvakarma as skilled artisan offered Surya the opportunity to operate once again, with all his offspring, like the sun god observed in Ellora Hindu Cave 10.

Saranyu and Surya, no longer mare and horse, presented themselves with their three sons, the twin horsemen and their youngest child Revanta (from Sanskrit रेवन्त, "brilliant").

Visvakarma, through his shaving lathe, quit the creator god Brahma's (from Sanskrit ब्रह्म, "priest") grandson of all but his quintessential brilliance everywhere except his feet. He removed superfluously beneficent, strong brilliance for remaking into storm god Indra's (from Sanskrit इण्ड्र, "raindrop-possessing") thunderbolt and war god Karttikeya's (from Sanskrit कार्त्तिकेय, "Pleiades") lance. Superfluous splendor that stressed Surya served as sources for destroyer god Shiva's (from Sanskrit शिव, "auspicious") trident and preserver god Vishnu's (from Sanskrit विष्णु, "all-pervasive") discus.

Ellora Hindu Cave 25 treasures the red-bodied, three-eyed, four-armed rider of the golden, seven-horse chariot of Arun (from Sanskrit अरुण, "tawny-colored"), the bird king's legless brother.

view of Ellora Hindu Cave 25 (right) with Cave 26 (center) and Cave 27 (left); Thursday, July 7, 2011, 12:47: Abhinav pandagale, CC BY SA 3.0 Unported, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

carving of Sun God Surya in ceiling of Ellora Hindu Cave 25; Monday, Sep. 12, 2016, 15:07: Ms Sarah Welch, CC BY SA 4.0 International, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Surya_(Sun_god)_carved_into_the_ceiling_of_Cave_25,_Ellora.jpg

view of Ellora Hindu Cave 25 (right) with Cave 26 (center) and Cave 27 (left); Thursday, July 7, 2011, 12:47: Abhinav pandagale, CC BY SA 3.0 Unported, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:From_top_of_the_last_ellora_caves.JPG

For further information: