Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Angel Lore: part 5 by Toi Thomas #OurAuthorGang

From Pinterest via
The Fairy - basic version by Bogdan-MRK
Today, in part 5, the finale, of my Angel Lore series, I’ll be sharing more angel knowledge with you from U – Z, as I complete my trek through the alphabet (see part ONE, part TWO, part THREE, and part FOUR). But first…

Do I believe in angels? Yes, I do.

I’ve come across many depictions of angelic encounters and find that they, or beings like them, have a place in almost every major religion and culture. Many even believe the existence of angels might be extraterrestrial. Who really knows? I simply enjoy the journey of finding out and learning about a concept that reaches across racial and religious lines. What can I say? I really like angels. That's why I write about them in my Eternal Curse Series.

On to the list…

Usiel (strength of God) is said to be a fallen angel who was among those that took human women as wives and brought about the Nephilim.

Valkyries (not for just blockbuster movies) are the horse-riding, sword-wielding angelic army of all female warriors presiding over the battlefield, deciding who lives or dies before carrying off the virtuous to Valhalla.

Angels weren’t always thought of or depicted with wings. It’s an idea that has gained and lost popularity many times in history but seems to be the standard now. Scholars attribute much of that to the association of the ‘soul’ with birds or winged entities.

I got nothing for ‘X’. If you know something, please share it with me. I’m always open to learning something new. The next is a two for one.

The Zoroastrian faith is a monotheistic religion derived from a previous Persian polytheism where the lesser gods became Yazatas (angels) in the new faith.

Well, that's all she wrote (as they say). I hope you enjoyed this exploration of angel lore and maybe even learned a few things. Please stick around this blog to see my next series all about music.

Be sure to check out my Eternal Curse Series.

Book 1:
Giovanni is a creature out of time. Mira is a doctor trying to classify him. Beauty and the Beast meet Jekyll and Hyde in this paranormal tale with romantic and biblical influences.


Book 2:
A tale for fathers, sons, and daughters, this epic saga touches the past and future. The story of Giovanni will bring you to tears as loss and duty blur the lines of hope for what is to come.

The Eternal Curse series was my first book and series I ever wrote and to know that someone liked it meant the world to me. It's currently unavailable pending a rewrite in order to align it with new developments in the 3rd installment. If you'd like to read the first two books and offer me your feedback, please consider joining my email list to receive a free digital copy. 

Find out more about me, my work, and my inspiration at the following links:


Amazon | Goodreads The ToiBox of Words | YouTube | See a list of my other posts here.

#cursescanbebroken, #angels, #wings, #Pinterest
COMMENTS


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Nikki McDonagh

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Another informative p and entertaining post. Great.
 
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Ruth de Jauregui via Google+

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Toi Thomas presents the finale of her angel lore series of posts on A Small Gang of Authors!
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Ruth de Jauregui

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
An amazing finale to your series on angels!!
 
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Erika M Szabo via Google+

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
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Erika M Szabo

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Awesome series Toi, I must find the time to read your books. Hopefully next year I can slow down enough to read :)
 
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Toi Thomas

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
It's been such fun sharing this series. I hope my next one goes over this well.
 
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Toi Thomas via Google+

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
 
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Joe Bonadonna

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
This is great, Toi! I'm sorry to see it come to a conclusion. Looking forward to your blog on music.
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Thank you, Joe. I;m looking forward to it myself.
 
+Toi Thomas -- you're welcome! :)

Joe Bonadonna via Google+

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Today on A Small Gang of Authors, Toinette Thomas concludes her excellent, 5-part blog on Angel Lore.
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Mary Anne Yarde

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Another wonderful post, Toi!
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Thank you.

Grace Au

1 year ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Sad to see your angel series end!
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Me too. It's really is one of my favorite things.

Rich Feitelberg via Google+

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Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Let there be light - part 1 #OurAuthorGang


Nature is amazing. We humans are, for the most part, in awe of it and have been ever since we crawled out of the primal ooze. Nothing stirs the soul quite so much as a beautiful sunset, a sunrise, a mass of twinkling stars, or the constant glow of the moon.




The sun gives us light and warmth, stars make us wonder about far off worlds, the moon illuminates our darkness with its wide-eyed face looking down on us like a distant mother watching her children. 


Not surprising that mankind worshipped these celestial orbs. From Ancient Egyptians and Aztec
sun gods to modern day Druids worshiping Alban Hefin the sun king during the Summer Solstice sunrise over Stonehenge, our need for light is deep routed in our psysche.

Many writers have used light to express happiness, love, hope, expectation. Just listen to some songs, the word 'light' comes up quite often. In my short story Glimmer, the protagonist, a young man resisting the drugs he is given to keep him 'sane', retreats into his own world and listens for the voices that come from the stars.

The world will not end because I close my eyes. The sun will still shine, so too the stars.


Many religions past and present have celebrated the joys of light. Festivals and special feast days such as Diwali, a Hindu tradition where families fill their homes and gardens with candles and lamps to celebrate the triumph of good over evil, to ignite wisdom in our hearts and bring hope to our darkest hours. The Jewish festival Hanukkah celebrating the victory of the Maccabees over the Hellenistic Syrians begins with the lighting of the shamash candle in the menorah. Christians light candles to honour the dead and pray for loved ones who need help. At Christmas, we decorate our houses with strings of cloloured lights

When there is no light, we miss it, don’t we? People in general, aren’t fond of the dark. Danger lurks in the shadows. What we can’t see we fear. Not so for cats or owls. They have a tapetum behind their retinas which acts like a mirror to reflect any source of limited light causing their pupils to expand and cover the entire front of their eyes. Enabling them to see in the almost dark.



Humans are adaptable though, and what we don’t possess naturally, we create. Our ancient ancestors recreated the sun by making fire. As we evolved so to did our methods of lighting our homes and streets. The ancient wood burning led to the use of wax candles, then gas lights, which were replaced by the magic of electricity, light bulbs. However, there is a cost to all of this. These wonderful illuminations have put a huge burden on our resources. Fossil fuels needed to generate our bright world are coming to an end. Even with wind turbines and solar panelling we are still in danger of not have enough power to generate all of the lights that are turned on across the planet each night. Will future generations be plunged into darkness?

Perhaps not, for there may be a simple solution to all of this.

Both fauna and flora have naturally occurring light sources. The Firefly, squid, jellyfish, insects, plankton and some strains of fungi, emit a bright glow that is generated from within. No outside source of energy is needed to produce their brightness.

Let me introduce you to Bioluminescence. Possibly the next step in our search for sustainable and renewable energy that will bring light to our darkness.

Check out these amazing creatures that glow in the dark: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/21011428

Watch out for my next post – Foxfire - where new technical advances are using natures natural light to brighten our world.

All photographs are by the author.




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