Category Archives: Immortality

The sanctuary at Brauron, not far from Athens, was the site of an important cult to Artemis. There are impressive reconstructed remains of the temple to the goddess and the three-sided stoa, which would have served as the cafeteria area, as well as the sacred spring. Visitors can cross the only stone bridge that survives from ancient Greece, complete with grooves like trolley-tracks to ease the path of wheels, indicating the number of trips made by expensive vehicles, laden with food and clothing as well as worshippers. The Athenian elite brought their tween daughters from the temple of Artemis on the Acropolis to the temple at Brauron to take part in various rituals, including a large festival known as the Brauronia. It was held every four years and involved the ritual presentation of garments to the goddess, the grinding of grain and the dedication of toys and dolls, which the girls gave up to symbolise the end of childhood and the prospect of marriage.

The little museum at Brauron contains a rich collection of archaeological finds: jewellery, statues and reliefs representing the procession of worshippers laden with offerings. The most affecting exhibits are the toys discovered in the rich mud around the site: knuckle bones, little carts with wheels (even before cars, kids played with toy cars) and dolls with articulated limbs that look very like Yoga Barbie (these dolls, like their modern counterparts, would have come with stylish interchangeable outfits). The marshy soil of the spring, into which many small, precious offerings were thrown, enabled the preservation of an extraordinarily high number of wooden artefacts, including fragments of chests or boxes and a female statuette perhaps representing the statue of Artemis supposedly brought to Brauron by Iphigenia, to whom there was also a cult on this site.

According to myth, Artemis refused to grant the Greek forces a favourable wind to set sail for Troy because Agamemnon, the leader of the expedition, had killed her sacred deer. She required him to make a terrible sacrifice: he must kill his own daughter, Iphigenia, to pay for fair passage to Troy, or lose his chance to enrich and empower himself by a great military victory. The slaughter of Iphigenia foreshadows the massacre and enslavement of many more civilians during the Trojan War, and sets in motion Agamemnons own death at the hands of his wife, Clytemnestra, in revenge for their daughter. The murder of daughter by father represents the tension within ancient Athenian society between loyalty to the household, including the women of the family, and loyalty to the public community, dominated by men. Aeschylus version of the myth, in the Agamemnon, presents the sacrifice of Iphigenia as the primary dilemma on which a new model of patriarchal democratic politics must eventually be founded. It is both a choice and no choice at all: the girl is bound and gagged before being killed, but her father, too, is bound by the yoke of necessity. Euripides later interpretation, Iphigenia at Aulis, composed towards the end of the Peloponnesian War (which Athens would lose), ascribes more agency and more self-delusion to the callous father and to his idealistic, self-sacrificing child, and finds in the myth a dark picture of selfish, over-privileged men who value their own interests and reputations over the lives of young people. But there was another version of the story. In it, Agamemnons attempt to kill his daughter did not result in her death, because the goddess, at the last moment, switched the girl for a deer, and transported Iphigenia to Tauris on the Black Sea, where she became a priestess, and from where she was eventually rescued by her long-lost brother, Orestes, who helped her escape to Brauron, bringing with her a sacred statue of Artemis.

The existence of multiple Iphigenia myths speaks to one of the central anxieties for any parent of a daughter: will the transition to adulthood inevitably mean less freedom (the gag in her mouth and around her limbs) and more danger, both from men in positions of political power and from men in her own household? Can mothers save daughters from fathers and husbands? What will happen to our wild ones? Will they be tamed, and broken by the taming? The girls who went to ancient Brauron to undergo the symbolic loss of their girlhood would have known that for them, as for their mothers, marriage might well mean death. Many would already have lost their own mothers or aunts or cousins to childbirth: part of the festival involved offering up these womens garments to the goddess. Contemplating the rockfall beside the cave, I found it easy to imagine the worshippers and mourners crowded in that dark, narrow space, a memorial to the pain, constraint and danger that attend on those who bleed. Artemis, an immortal virgin, goddess of the menstrual moon, was also the Olympian most closely associated with childbirth and gynaecological ailments, and the worshippers at the temple would have included adult women who stood in need of her protection, and her power to punish men who overstepped the mark.

The version of the myth in which Iphigenia manages to get away from her father offers a glimpse of hope or a fantasy of escape from patriarchal danger, the prospect that girls or women might somehow activate a different kind of power. The ancient initiates at Brauron were called little bears or bear-cubs (arktoi), and they seem to have pretended to be bears, perhaps with the help of masks and costumes a reference to another myth about the killing of an animal sacred to Artemis, a bear, and also a hint at their ferocity and strength. Bears are rare in modern Greece, and we didnt see any when I visited last month. The sun was too high in the sky for most of the wild creatures favoured by Artemis, the lady of wild things, potnia theron; all the rabbits and mice were hiding in the undergrowth. I went to Brauron with the poet Alicia Stallings, who recently translated the Batrachomyomachia, or The Battle between the Frogs and the Mice, an ancient mock-epic that reduces the Iliads grand meditation on the relationship between rage, violence and grief to a miniature scale, and reimagines Iliadic warriors as tiny animals, fully anthropomorphised and equipped with feelings of sorrow, anger, curiosity and xenophobia (as well as ingeniously scaled-down Homeric weapons). Walking through the marshes, we searched for toads or frogs, hoping to catch a glimpse of the treacherous, amphibian villains of the Batrachomyomachia lurking in the creek, or to hear their croaky song (Brekekekex, koax, koax!). No frogs sang for us. But there were dragonflies, whirring like drones through the thick rushes, tiny lizards on the rocks, sparrows chattering amid the ruins, bright red, blue and yellow flowers growing in the stones around the shrine and at last, at the edge of the path, a large snake slithering into the long grass, perhaps on its way to shed its skin and become its new self.

Shades of the prison-house begin to close/Upon the growing boy, the speaker laments in Wordsworths Immortality Ode. In most societies, constrictions of much more obvious kinds close in around growing girls. Several Hellenistic epigrams from the Greek Anthology evoke the transition from girlhood to womanhood, and hint at the vulnerability and loss of freedom that this will entail. Here is one, dating to around 100 BCE, by Antipater of Sidon. The poem is in the voice of the young girls headband, now set aside so that the teenagers wild hair can be constrained by the headgear of an adult woman.

The girl with thick, abundant hair, named Pony,has tied it back, and washed her scented face,because her time of marriage has arrived.I am the headband that she used to wear,but I require the fun and games of girlhood.Artemis, grant the child of Lycomedesmarriage and offspring, in your kindness, please,now she has given up her knuckle bones.

Perhaps the headband has an ulterior motive for presenting the transition to a different form of headgear as one involving constraint and loss. But the poem also hints that there may be a difference between the perspective of the girl herself and that of her father, who wants her to produce offspring to continue his line.

Alicia and I both have tween daughters. They were not with us on the trip, but it was easy to imagine them scrambling over the ruins (which is of course forbidden) or going into bored adolescent sulks as the adults talked on. It was easy, too, to imagine their ancient counterparts, dressed in the yellow saffron dresses approved by the goddess, roaming over the marshes looking for frogs and snakes and tadpoles, climbing rocks and wading into the muddy water, competing in races, dressing up and doing one anothers hair, and forming intense and complex friendships. Alicias poem Verge, about an earlier trip to Brauron, asks the goddess to allow her daughter to keep her wildness: Leave in her something else, unnamed,/Untrammelled, liminal, untamed.

I remember being told, when I first got my period, You are now a woman, and then warned not to clog the toilet. The social pressure to inhabit this new identity, woman, seemed to be somehow intertwined with the pain and the mess. My primary source of comfort during the miserable period of early adolescence was my pet rabbit, an animal favoured by Artemis (my children have goddess-approved pet rats). Back home in West Philadelphia, I went with my two younger children (aged twelve and eleven) to a modern version of the Brauronia: a period party. Our ritual was organised by Tara Rubenstein, the leader of a youth group called Artemis Pack, intended for girls, non-binary and gender-queer kids aged between seven and fourteen. Not all the kids who participated in the ceremony were girls; one was a trans boy, several were gender-fluid or non-binary or demi-girl; non-menstruators were also welcome.

The period party began with the younger kids anointing the older ones with glitter and perfume before they gathered around the fire pit. Each in turn took a pinch of scented herbs and scattered them into the fire to say goodbye to childhood a ritual borrowed from the Brauronia. The kids seemed for the most part eager to embrace their maturity (and excited at the opportunity to play with fire). Each parent also took a pinch and gave it to the fire, to renounce (less happily) their childrens childhoods. Each not-quite-adult was given red ribbons to plait, reminding them that they can choose how to braid the strands of their own life and which traditions, values and relationships they want to carry forward. There was a ritual sip of red wine (a thrillingly taboo moment for 12-year-olds) and then the kids were wrapped together in a huge green blanket, before it was released to let them out into the world.

The last element of the ceremony is different every year, because it is a response to the social and political issues that might affect a person at the very beginning of adult life. Last year, they meditated on the California wildfires. This year, the topic was the abolition of the constitutional right to abortion in the US. The physical violation of forced pregnancy, and its numberless medical, financial, social and psychological consequences, will become inescapable for many. It is hard not to be enraged by the hypocrisy and callousness of the removal of the option of safe, legal abortion from those who need it. Will my beautiful, wild, quirky kids and their friends be able to find a way out of the gags and the nets cast around their bodies, and hold onto their magical strangeness, their autonomy, their freedom?

At the end of the ceremony, we ate vagina-shaped pasta stuffed with tomato sauce and a cake, constructed with great care by one of my children, that oozed sticky red jam. I imagined the embarrassment and mockery that would have greeted this in the Oxford of my childhood and hoped that the goddess might send us a sign of her favour. Just then, a groundhog ran through the weeds at the bottom of the garden. Even in Pennsylvania, Artemis is with us.

Excerpt from:

Emily Wilson Diary: Artemis is with us LRB 4 August 2022 - London Review of Books

When horses achieve greatness, or accomplish particularly memorable feats, it is customary for stakes races to be named in their honor. Across the country, there are races the bear the names of legends like Man o War, Secretariat, Kelso, and Cigar; even more recent greats like Zenyatta, Rachel Alexandra, and Wise Dan are remembered with stakes races.

Every summer, Saratoga Race Coursein New York hosts the Jim Dandy Stakes, a major prep for the prestigious Travers Stakes later in the Saratoga meet. It is only fitting that the Jim Dandy Stakes is a prep for the Travers, since it was in the 1930 Travers that an unassuming 3-year-old chestnut colt pulled off one of the most astonishing upsets in the history of horse racing to ensure that his name would never be forgotten.

His name, naturally, was Jim Dandy. His sire father) was Jim Gaffney, winner of the 1907 Hopeful Stakes and a successful stallion that had already sired the 1923 Preakness Stakes winner Vigil. Jim Dandys dam (mother) was Thunderbird, a daughter of the very successful sire Star Shoot, and further back in Jim Dandys pedigree were the names of many other famous horses, including Epsom Derby winner Bend Or, English Triple Crown winner Isinglass, and the remarkable U.S. sire Lexington.

This was a remarkable contrast to 1930s leading 3-year-old Gallant Fox, a seemingly unbeatable colt that had won the Wood Memorial in his seasonal debut before adding the Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes to sweep the Triple Crown. Showing no signs of slowing down, Gallant Fox won the Dwyer Stakes by 1 lengths so easily that his Daily Racing Form past performances include the notation loafed, and two weeks later, he won the rich Arlington Classic then worth more than any of the Triple Crown races by a neck after a long stretch battle.

Much like 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, Gallant Fox was a rising star making history with every startas he headed to Saratoga for the prestigious Travers Stakes on Aug. 16, and there were few people that believed Gallant Fox could be beaten. He had it all excellent early speed, a powerful finishing kick, and proven ability on both fast and wet tracks. He would be facing only three rivals in the Travers, and only one Whichone, the leading 2-year-old of 1929 and a winner of three straight races at Saratoga was expected to have a chance of pulling off an upset.

The odds reflected this confidence. Gallant Fox was made the heavy favorite at 1-2 while Whichone was sent off at 8-5 and third choice Sun Falcon was 30-1. Jim Dandy? No one thought he had a chance, and his odds were a staggering 100-1.

But then two factors combined to dramatically change the complexion of the race. First, rain reduced the track to a muddy, wet mess officially labeled heavy, a condition deeper and wetter than Gallant Fox was used to encountering.

Secondly, when the horses were sent on their way at the start of the race, Whichone showed more early speed than in the past and engaged Gallant Fox in a tremendous battle for the lead.

All of thesudden, a speed duel was underway.

Sonny Workman, the jockey of Whichone, believed that the outside part of the track might be faster than the rail, and allowed Whichone to run many paths off the rail throughout the race. Gallant Fox, drawn outside of Whichone, had no choice but to go even wider, and both colts lost a tremendous amount of ground while setting fast fractions of :25 flat, :49 2/5, and 1:13 3/5. In the meantime, several lengths behind them, Jim Dandy hugged the rail in third place, splashing happily through the muddy conditions that he loved.

As the race went on and Gallant Fox and Whichone continued their intense battle for the lead, there was a sudden flash of movement along the rail. As the leaders began to tire from their exhausting efforts, a longshot was rallying fast on the inside. Turning for home, with Gallant Fox and Whichone on the far outside, the improbable ...the impossible ...the unthinkable suddenly unfolded before the eyes of the 30,000 fans in attendance.

Gallant Fox, the Triple Crown winner and seemingly unbeatable champion, had lost the lead. And the new leader was a chestnut blur named Jim Dandy.

For Gallant Fox, the Travers would mark his only loss of the season; after his shocking defeat, he rebounded to win the Saratoga Cup, Lawrence Realization, and Jockey Club Gold Cup to retire with record earnings of $328,165. In contrast, Jim Dandy would never win another stakes race, and he eventually retired at the age of 12 with a record of just seven wins from 141 starts. In his last four seasons of racing, he never even finished in the trifecta.

Yes, for the majority of their careers, there was no comparing Gallant Fox and Jim Dandy. But on one summer day at Saratoga, it was Jim Dandy who reached the winners circle and achieved immortality in his own way.

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The Legend of Unthinkable 1930 Travers Winner Jim Dandy - America's Best Racing

R

arely has a secret been kept so well. The cast of the 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony, comprised of 7,500 professional performers and volunteers, practised for months to deliver one of the great cultural moments in our recent history. The Games had truly begun.

For 17 days, from that Super Saturday in the Olympic Stadium to Team GBs dominance of the track, Michael Phelps in the pool to Nicola Adams in the ring, history was being made wherever you looked.

The Games have had a lasting legacy. One only has to walk around the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, where facilities are still used by professionals and members of the public. The new housing, transport links and facilities have transformed Stratford and the surrounding areas.

It is true that the sporting legacy has not endured in all aspects. As we reveal in todays paper, the Olympic boroughs have seen childhood obesity rates soar to some of the highest in the country in the decade since the Games.

These figures will raise fears that one important legacy of the Games a healthier and more active population has failed to materialise for children in the part of the city that did so much to host the event.

But the 2012 Olympics were more than just one long, and not inexpensive, party. They inspired people across the country, demonstrated once again the power of sport, and served as a reminder that London, host in 1908 and 1948, could still put on a great show for the world.

Start strike talks now

The first rail strikes of the year garnered wall-to-wall coverage and caused widespread disruption for commuters. Todays industrial action by members of the RMT union over pay, cuts and changes to working conditions are unacceptable and cannot be the way forward.

Londoners, and those who travel into the city, pay high prices and are entitled to a decent service. At the same time, it is understandable that workers are demanding pay deals that acknowledge difficult economic times.

What is therefore vital at this point is an activist government that is prepared to use its convening powers to

bring all parties to the negotiating table and sort out a compromise deal. Instead, whether distracted by a leadership election or otherwise, ministers seem resigned to rolling strikes.

Commuters crushed into carriages or cancelling meetings in the city will understandably say that is not good enough. No solution will be pain-free, but governing requires hard choices and the occasional banging together of heads.

That is what is required now, so that a summer of strikes does not give way to a modern-day winter of discontent.

We dare to dream

A backheel. In the Euro 2022 semi-final. Against the top-ranked team in the competition. To make it 3-0 and virtually guarantee England a place in the Wembley final. Take a bow, Alessia Russo.

The Lionesses are now 90 minutes (dont mention the p word) from sporting immortality. Either France or Germany await in the final. Sarina Wiegmans team should fear neither. We cannot wait for Sunday.

Go here to read the rest:

The Standard View: Celebrate the Olympics Games, 10 years on - Evening Standard

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Though we're months away from Halloween, it's never too early to get a head start on spooky season. While you may be most familiar with scary movies, books are reliable scares, too. Ghosts, haunted mansions, and murderous vampires are just a few classic horror tropes and these books offer those in abundance. From The Shining to The Exorcist, here are the 25 best horror books of all time.

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You can't talk about horror without mentioning Stephen King. Over the course of his nearly five-decade-long career, he's brought us killer clowns, murderous fan girls, and, of course, haunted hotels. When Jack Torrance takes a job as the off-season caretaker of the Overlook Hotel, he becomes possessed by the buildings supernatural forces.

Youre probably familiar with this story. When a demonic spirit possesses an 11-year-old girl, Catholic priests are called to her home to perform an exorcism. The book was so popular that the iconic film adaptation was released just two years after its publication.

Whats more horrific than a creepy monk? After Ambrosio finds himself infatuated with a young girl, he abandons his religious values for a life riddled with immorality. Widely regarded as one of the first Gothic novels ever written, The Monk was condemned at the time of its publication in 1796 and the author even had to make revisions to avoid charges of blasphemy.

As one of the first novels to initiate the horror boom of the 1960s, Rosemarys Baby tells the story of a woman who is pregnant with the spawn of Satan. For Rosemary, what ensues is debilitating pain, extreme weight loss, and an intense craving for raw meat. Read at your own risk.

Who doesnt love vampires? Carmilla is about a female vampire who becomes obsessed with a young woman. The book has an undercurrent of romance and lust, though the relationship is never explicitly named. Supernatural figures and dark castles are key elements in this story, and it even inspired Bram Stokers Dracula, which was published years later.

There are very few characters as iconic as Count Dracula. In this 1897 classic horror novel, Dracula leaves his home of Transylvania in order to find fresh blood over in England. When word gets around that theres a vampire in town, a small group hunts him down, with the intention to kill.

One key element of every classic horror novel is the lasting omnipresence of its characters in popular culture, and Frankenstein has exactly that. When the scientist Victor Frankenstein conducts an experiment to create a sentient being, the creature he makes ends up being more grotesque and sinister than he could have imagined.

Just like the 1818 classic, this newer interpretation of Frankenstein is all about the pitfalls of creation. In Baghdad, a scavenger named Hadi collects various body parts and sews them together to create a corpse. But when the corpse becomes sentient and goes missing, several mysterious murders start to take over the city. And just like Victor Frankenstein, Hadi realizes that he has created a monster.

124 was spiteful. Full of a babys venom. So begins Toni Morrisons Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Though we may not readily classify Morrison as a horror writer, she was well acquainted with ghosts. Beloved follows a formerly enslaved woman named Sethe (played by Oprah in the film adaptation) who is haunted by her deceased daughter.

If you watched and loved the Netflix series, then get acquainted with the 1959 gothic horror novel that started it all. When four people, including an occult scholar and a poltergeist specialist, travel to the haunted Hill House, they begin to experience bizarre paranormal activities. The author Shirley Jackson reportedly studied traditional ghost stories to accurately deliver this haunting story.

What's more horrific than cannibalism? When its first reported that a virus has made all animal meat poisonous, the government begins transitioning to human flesh, making cannibalism completely legal. Marcos takes a job working in the meat processing plant in order to support his dying father and must now deal with the insanity and horror of his changing world.

Norman Bates and horror go hand in hand. The novel follows him while he works as a caretaker of an isolated motel and deals with the tumultuous and strange relationship that he has with his mother.

If youre a fan of short stories, then this is for you. In Japanese Ghost Stories, princesses turn into frogs, dead brides go on a haunting spree, and paintings come to life. Theres also your fair share of goblins and faceless monsters. The author was inspired by traditional Japanese folklore and even included some anecdotes about his own eerie experiences of growing up in Ireland.

What happens when a 10-year-old girl turns out to be a 53-year-old genetically modified vampire? Octavia Butlers Fledgling is the answer. In this blend of science fiction and horror, Butler explores the symbiotic relationship between humans and vampires, and what happens when the two become closer than ever.

While The Other was also part of the horror boom of the mid-1900s, it has since flown under the radar because its film adaptation wasnt nearly as successful as The Exorcist and Rosemarys Baby. But that doesnt mean the story isnt any less horrific. Two identical 13-year-old twins living on a rural New England farm are the subject of Tryons debut psychological horror novel. The twist? One of them is a sociopath.

In Coralines house, there are 14 doors and only 13 of them open and close. One day when shes able to unlock the final door, she finds a passage to another home that looks just like hers, with a mother and father who dont want to let her go. Other children are there, too, and she becomes tasked with freeing all of the lost souls, and herself.

Jessica has found the perfect man in David. Hes attentive, caring, and everything shes ever wanted in a husband. But one day, he confesses to her that 400 years ago, he traded his humanity so that he would achieve immortality. To keep Jessica and their daughter with him forever, he invokes a forbidden ritual so that they may never leave his side.

In a long and detailed interview with a reporter, a vampire named Louis lays out his life story, which is filled with killings and blood sucking. For an added scare, check out the film adaptation starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt.

Youre probably familiar with this story, and its many spoofs. A mysterious videotape warns four teenagers that theyll die in one week unless they complete an unspecified task. Shortly after, all four of them die from heart failure. When a journalist learns about the tape, he watches the video and attempts to solve the mystery before it's too late.

This coming-of-age novel is the lovechild of Stand by Me and Stranger Things. Jakes uncle Calvin is a lover of all things occult and strange. When a pair of siblings moves into town, Calvin decides to welcome them all into the "Saturday Night Ghost Club." But what begins as a fun summer activity quickly turns into close encounters with the supernatural.

For those unfamiliar with the work of Edgar Allan Poe, spooky season is a great time to get acquainted. The 19th-century poet infused a level of mystery and eeriness in all of his work. If you had to read The Raven in school, then you know exactly what the vibes are.

When Noem travels to the Mexican countryside to visit her newly-married cousin, the seemingly haunted house that she's staying in begins to infiltrate her dreams. Dark family secrets, violence, and horror are what you'll find in this modern classic.

While Colson Whitehead is mostly known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Underground Railroad, he's also dabbled in horror. After a plague takes over lower Manhattan, a man named Mark and two other civilians are tasked with clearing Chinatown of any remaining zombies. What could go wrong?

This 1898 horror novella follows a governess who cares for two children at a remote and haunted estate. She begins to see unknown figures around the grounds and they're later revealed to be old inhabitants of the estate. Chaos, and even mysterious deaths, ensue.

In this classic gothic novella, legal practitioner Gabriel Utterson investigates a series of unusual incidents between his old friend Dr. Jekyll and a killer criminal Mr. Hyde. However, he soon realizes that Jekyll and Hyde are one and the same.

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25 Best Horror Books of All Time - Best Horror Books to Read - ELLE

In front of an estimated crowd of 35,000 gathered on the lawn and hills in the cradle of baseball, the 46-year-old Ortiz was enshrined along with 83-year-old Jim Kaat, 84-year-old Tony Oliva, and four baseball legends who have already passed: Gil Hodges, Buck ONeil, Minnie Mioso, and Bud Fowler (who actually grew up in Cooperstown). Big Papis 21-year-old daughter, Alex Veda, performed the national anthem before the induction program.

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Wearing a blue suit and red tie, Ortiz became the fourth player born in the Dominican Republic enshrined, joining Juan Marichal, Pedro Martinez, and Vladimir Guerrero Sr., all of whom were seated behind Papi on the stage at the Clark Athletic Center. Dominican flags peppered the fan seating areas.

A gracious Ortiz thanked God, the Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame players, his own family, the USA, his minor league managers, the Minnesota Twins, and a lot of folks who have helped him in his Red Sox years, citing managers Grady Little, Terry Francona, and John Farrell.

I cant thank you enough for building me up and supporting me through the years, said Ortiz. That [Red Sox] organization made me the man I am today.

Red Sox lifers Ted Williams and Carl Yastrzemski were inducted in their first year of Hall eligibility, but Ortiz stands alone from them as a first-ballot Hall of Famer who won three championships with the Red Sox. Hes one of only four big league players to hit at least 500 homers and win at least three World Series; the others are Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and Reggie Jackson.

There was a strong Boston flavor throughout Induction Weekend as Red Sox Nation planted a flag and many of Ortizs former teammates (Johnny Damon, Dustin Pedroia, Mike Lowell, Trot Nixon, Tim Wakefield, Kevin Youkilis, Kevin Millar, and Jason Varitek, to name a few), made the trek to Cooperstown.

I dont think I would have made it without their support and love, said Ortiz, singling out Pedro, Pedroia, and Varitek as teammates he especially enjoyed.

One couldnt help but note that Ortizs enshrinement came on the same date (July 24) as the Varitek-Alex Rodriguez home-plate dustup in 2004.

That was the year everything changed for the Boston Red Sox. After 86 years of frustration and multiple close calls, Ortiz was the man most responsible for Bostons biblical, come-from-behind, Curse-busting ALCS against the Yankees.

It all started with the Sox down, three-games-to-zero, trying to stay alive in the bottom of the 12th inning of Game 4 at Fenway.

Ortizs after-hours blast into the Yankee bullpen at 1:22 a.m. made the Red Sox 6-4 winners in Game 4 and Foxs Joe Buck told Baseball America, Well see you later today.

Exactly 15 hours and 49 minutes later, Pedro threw the first pitch of Game 5, which lasted five hours and 14 minutes over 14 innings and was won when Ortiz (who had already homered earlier in the game) fouled off six pitches before dumping a game-winning single to center off Esteban Loaiza.

Two games . . . both ending on the same day (Oct. 18) . . . consuming 26 innings over ten hours and 51 minutes . . . both won by David Ortiz.

The Sox went to New York and took two more, then swept the Cardinals in the World Series. Bostons Seor Octubre had 19 RBIs in 14 postseason games and was suddenly rivaling Tom Brady as Bostons most popular athlete of the 21st century.

Ortiz went on to win two more championships, rescuing the Sox with his eighth-inning grand slam in Game 2 of the 2013 ALCS against the Tigers (remember bullpen cop Steve Horgan raising his hands as Torii Hunter went ass-over-teakettle?) then hitting an unbelievable .688 in the Fall Classic against the Cardinals.

That was the same year Ortiz personified Boston Strong, telling the world: This is our [expletive] city and nobody gonna dictate our freedom.

Brady, Ted Williams, Larry Bird, and Bobby Orr are four athletes who owned our town for most of the time they played. Bill Russell played his entire career in Boston and was the greatest winner in the history of professional sports. All five Hub heroes started their careers in New England and enjoyed most of their success here.

Big Papi is different. First signed by the Seattle Mariners, he played parts of six big league seasons with the Twins before putting on a Boston uniform. He was released by the Twins at the age of 27 after hitting .272 with 20 homers and 75 RBI in 2002. That will always be something of a head scratcher, but along with Randy Moss and Kevin Garnett, Ortiz goes down as one of Minnesotas greatest gifts to Boston.

After being released, Ortiz bumped into Pedro Martinez while dining at a restaurant in the Dominican Republic. Seizing an opportunity to take care of his countryman and help the Sox, Pedro called Boston traveling secretary Jack McCormick (the man who would later be knocked down by Manny Ramirez when McCormick couldnt fill Mannys ticket request) and McCormick called Bostons rookie 28-year-old general manager, Theo Epstein.

We already had David on our radar, Epstein recalled this weekend. But over the holidays Pedro ran into David and started calling everybody repeatedly. He had Jack Mack track me down. He tracked down Larry [Lucchino]. He just blew everybody up, going on and on, telling us what a great hitter David was, and how great he would be in our clubhouse.

That was unusual," recalled Lucchino. I dont ever remember ever getting a call from a player on behalf of another player. It was pretty powerful stuff."

On Jan. 22, 2003, the Red Sox signed Ortiz to a one-year contract for $1.25 million. It was not front page news in The Boston Globe. Not even Page 1 of sports. Announcing the signing, Globe reporter Gordon Edes wrote a short news story in which he chided the Sox for not being big spenders. (Sound familiar?)

On a day that . . . cash-strapped Florida Marlins sprang for a $10-million, one-year deal for All-Star catcher Ivan Rodriguez, the Red Sox all but completed a winter of shopping at Wal-Mart yesterday, announcing the signing of free agent first baseman, David Ortiz.

There was a lot of competition for a spot in the Sox lineup in 2003. In addition to Ortiz, Epstein acquired Millar, Bill Mueller, Todd Walker, and Jeremy Giambi. Meanwhile, Shea Hillenbrand was still a starter.

Ortiz played behind Giambi at the start of the season, sitting on the bench next to Doug Mirabelli, appearing in only 31 of the first 54 games. He had two homers at the end of May and teammates were calling him Juan Pierre, a flyswatter outfielder who hit 18 homers in 14 big league seasons. Ortiz complained to Epstein, who told him to be patient. Epstein then traded Hillenbrand, which freed up a spot in the lineup. Ortiz wound up hitting .288 in 128 games with 31 homers and 101 RBI.

One year later, he became Big Papi and broke the Curse of the Bambino. Sox CEO Sam Kennedy has called Ortiz, the most important player in the history of the Red Sox."

When you do the things David did, you become a super hero," remembered Epstein. He had authenticity and the way hes unfiltered brought out the best in everybody. It really connected with the city."

When I think about Boston, I definitely think about 2004, 2007, and of course, 2013, when our city was shaken by a Marathon bombing, Ortiz said during his speech. I have never seen a community bounce back and reunite like Boston.

When I think about Boston, I also think about the last game I played [in 2016]. Standing on that field at Fenway Park, it felt like the whole city of New England and each one and every one of you was surrounding me and was showing me all your love.

Big Papi.

Boston baseballs Santa Claus.

Hall of Famer.

Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at daniel.shaughnessy@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @dan_shaughnessy.

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David Ortiz already achieved baseball immortality in Boston, and now the Hall of Fame has made it official - The Boston Globe

Netflixs recent Into the Breach mobile port was a mere taste of whats to come. Next month, the streaming service is releasing three more games to mobile gamers, including 3D puzzle game Twelve Minutes.

As part of their monthly announcements, Netflix has revealed the next lineup of mobile games for its gaming service. Unfortunately, no dates were provided for the new games, but theyre all coming this month.

For starters, Annapurna Interactives Twelve Minutes is coming to mobile. Starring James McAvoy, Daisy Ridley and Willem DaFoe, this fantastic narrative puzzle is a A-star adventure.

With simple controls, Twelve Minutes should be perfect on mobile. On PC, simple mouse inputs control all. This means that this new mobile conversion should play like a dream!

Clocking in at just a few hours, Twelve Minutes is a perfect addition to Netflixs library. Its a simple game that will only take up a smidge of time, keeping you eager for another release.

Alongside Twelve Minutes, Netflix is bringing the hotly anticipated Immortality to mobile. Created by Sam Barlow (Her Story), this new FMV game is expected to be a treat.

Whats great about Immortality on mobile is that its seemingly launching day and date with the console and PC versions. This isnt confirmed, but Netflix has slated the mobile release for August, and the other versions launch on August 30th.

While there are currently no reviews out for the game, Immorality is expected to be a hit. If not? Its part of a Netflix subscription, and theres plenty of other games to play.

Also coming to Netflix Gaming:Netflix Heads Up! and Rival Pirates. The former is an adaptation of the classic charades game, but with a Netflix twist! Essentially, its about Netflix characters now.

On the other hand, Rival Pirates is a 3D action game where you play as, well, pirates! The deacription reads: Set sail, fire cannon balls and avoid traps to find treasure before your enemies in this swashbuckling adventure.

With Twelve Minutes, Immortality and more, Netflixs August lineup is looking very solid indeed.Without sounding greedy, were excited for the next batch!

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Twelve Minutes, Immortality and more coming to mobile via Netflix - DroidGamers

When Dina Asher-Smith lined up for her World Championships 200 metres heat in Eugene in the early hours, it was the first time a British woman has ever defended a global sprint title. She came through comfortably and will race the semi-finals in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Three years ago in Doha, Asher-Smith took just 94 steps to win gold and seal her place in the record books. Before she attempts to repeat the feat, Telegraph Sport spoke to Britains greatest ever 200m runners to analyse how she became world champion.

Before she lined up for the 2019 world 200m final, Asher-Smith was under no illusion that it was her race to lose. The absentee list was so long that even running well below par would have sufficed to claim gold.

As her British sprint team-mate Adam Gemili put it before the race: Its not about if shes going to win it, its about how fast she can go.

Expectation brings about pressure of its own for a young woman who has long seemed destined for greatness. But there are few athletes more intent on success.

Shes always been very focused on what she wants to achieve. Sometimes athletes dont have full belief in themselves but one of the things I realised when I first came across her aged 13 or 14 was her strong family support.

I remember going to give Dina my Olympic medal to try on and her mum said the first medal she tries on needs to be her own. That was telling to me because even though I was coached by Linford Christie, I never asked to see his Olympic gold either. The first I wanted to see was mine.

I knew from a very early stage that she had the right mentality to be successful.

Dinas first 4x100m relay event as part of the British team was at the Anniversary Games in 2013 and that was the first time Id ever met her.

She was 17 and what was so memorable in our first encounter was when you have a newcomer to the team, what usually happens is they can be very overwhelmed.

I was second leg and Dina was first, and we only did one warm-up changeover before the race. In the call room before the race I asked her if she was ok and she just went: Anyika, dont worry Ive got this. Id never heard anything like that from any newcomer into the team!

Ive been in a call room with her many times and shes definitely a calm presence, always relaxed. But she wont have a conversation with any of the other girls especially going into a big race where she is the favourite. She will just focus by herself.

Ive known Dina for a long time and the one thing she has that every sprinter needs is the killer attitude.

Youve got to have that, otherwise at her level youre wasting your time. Very few top-end sprinters dont have it because its the drive to win and be the best.

Shes so happy, smiley and giggly, but put her on the track and the beast is unleashed.

One of the things that has always struck me about Dina is her mental strength and her ability to compete. Shes got that natural ability to be able to step up when it matters.

Dont let her smiley, nice exterior fool you. Underneath is someone who is extremely determined and incredibly competitive. She is the ultimate professional and shes always gone out there with the mentality to win.

I dont have to say anything to Dina before a race. I just leave her to do what she has to do. Before a race she has a plan in place, shes very focused and in the zone.

Although she has made her name on the global stage with victories over the longer sprint distances of 100m and 200m, Asher-Smiths first senior international title was at the European Indoor Championships in 2015 over 60m a distance that hinges almost entirely on getting out of the blocks quickly.

Her start has always been a key element to her races and she has spoken in the past about knowing whether she will win within a few strides of the gun.

Shes already rehearsed the race in her mind many times beforehand to get to this position so once youre in the blocks you just clear your mind and listen for any sound to react to.

Her ability to react and put her technique into play is the difference between a good athlete and a great athlete.

For her, its about gaining an advantage on the athlete outside. Shell feel it working with each stride.

Shes very efficient in her first few steps. Shes got a good knee lift, but crucially her foot lands underneath her, which allows her to engage the right muscles at the right time.

You see a lot of sprinters who will reach out and land just in front of themselves, which provides a slight braking motion. With Dina, each step lands underneath perfectly. You combine that with her natural reactions and thats why she starts so well.

She has an exceptional start it has improved significantly from a young age to where she is now. There are very few 200m athletes who can compete with her start.

Because of her size, shes a high frequency athlete, which helps her at the start. Usain Bolt, for example, is a stride-length runner, whereas Tyson Gay is about high frequency.

Dina is more a frequency-based runner, which suits someone who has a good start.

Her first two steps are incredible. Shes one of the best starters in the world so by the time shes done her first two steps shes already gone a couple of inches up ahead of her rivals. If I was the girl in the lane inside her Id already be shaking!

Aided by the quick turnover of her legs, Asher-Smith has no problem getting up to top speed ahead of her rivals. Her 60m split during her silver medal-winning 100m run at the 2019 World Championships was timed at faster than the indoor 60m world record.

This part of the race tests an athletes ability to go from near stationary to full-on sprinting, while also having to negotiate a curve in the track.

What she does is drive through her angles really well. She doesnt pop up from the blocks, which would mean you lose momentum and have to then get going again.

Shes able to drive upwards step by step, almost like a plane taking off and steadily increasing the angle of elevation.

You gradually start to rise up not just your torso, but also your hips. She does that all so efficiently.

The drive phase is all about generating as much power as you can with high frequency.

Once you come out of the drive phase youre able to turn your legs quicker and by that point she has already closed a yard or so on her rivals, and she hasnt even started running yet.

Youre trying to break the stagger as quickly as you can so you want to go past the runner outside you and then past the next person.

Shes so good at being aggressive for the first 70m or so. Then you can take one breath, which takes about 10-15m, and prepare to attack off the turn.

Youre trying to hit out and drive aggressively with an element of smoothness and finesse. It doesnt take her long before shes at the apex of the turn.

Not every great sprinter can be a successful bend runner some get thrown off course because of the centrifugal force the bend places on their balance, meaning they are unable to hug the inside of their lane to ensure they cover the shortest ground possible.

Asher-Smith has always excelled on the bend, with her excellent balance meaning this is a part of the race she expects to continue gaining ground on her rivals.

Shes really aggressive and attacks the bend. A lot of 100m sprinters feel as though they have to hold something back until the end but if youve trained correctly, you should be able to be aggressive on the turn.

Shes so good at being aggressive for the first 70m or so. Then you can take one breath, which takes about 10-15m, and prepare to attack off the turn.

Everyone knows what Dina is going to do but they cant do anything about it because she is just so good.

Running the bend is a fine art. One of the key things is running right on the inside of the turn, not the outside, because you want to be running 200m exactly, not 201m or more.

Dinas frequency of leg turnover is something that assists her running a turn because with more strides you can navigate a turn easier.

I was always taught to think of visualising the bend like driving: when you learn how to drive, you dont follow a turn, you look beyond a turn. She will be looking further away to ensure she runs beyond the bend.

Dina attacks the first 80m so well. I would get to about 80m, take a deep breath and then relax.

You keep the speed that you have built, but the most important thing is to keep the tension on the outside of your foot. That allows you to get the slingshot effect when you come off the bend.

If you relax too much, you lose that tension and power, and then you have to start again into the straight. What she does so well is to keep applying the pressure around the bend.

Her bends have always been incredible. Its a skill that not everyone has.

You see a lot of athletes start to fall apart at this point, especially after going through the rounds. You have to be so fit to get through the rounds and then deliver in the final.

Coming off the turn, she already knows she is ahead so all she has to do is control the next part of the race.

Since her emergence as a 200m sprinter of global standard, it is almost unheard of for Asher-Smith not to be leading when she comes off the bend in a 200m race.

Even when she has been beaten in recent years by Shaunae Miller-Uibo, her main rival over 200m, Asher-Smith has been in front when entering the home straight.

It is one of the biggest transitional parts of the race that tests an athletes ability to avoid being propelled off course as the track goes from curved to straight.

By this point, the race is hers to win. No disrespect to the other girls, but you can just tell from Dinas step and frequency that she is in total control.

Something that my coaches taught me is to think of coming off the bend as like a slingshot when you come off a turn you have it pulled back as far as it will go and then you release it so it feels freeing.

Dinas transition is just so smooth. Because she has so much control coming off the bend into the home straight she isnt playing catch up. Shes just staying relaxed and in control. It looks so easy for her.

We call this the elastic-band effect because shes run a great turn and when she gets to this point she turns her legs and accelerates away from the field. That throws you down the home straight.

Its like pulling back an elastic band when you let it go, the elastic band flies off and catapults you down the home straight.

Its about getting your body in the right position to control the speed off the bend.

If you try too hard at the end of the bend, the slingshot effect can put your body in the wrong position. Dina is able to set her body in the right position, which enables her to continue the nice cadence and stride length up the straight.

If your bodys not in the right position, youre going to start to tie up near the end.

As she comes off the bend she keeps her hips high, which is the most important thing. Its important to have that hip height as a sprinter so that your body doesnt sink. That gives you the best power bounce.

You dont claw to get that stride length, its the power you get off the track which allows you to increase the stride length. Some other runners will twist or sink their hips, which means they lose speed.

What Dina is good at doing is being able to float out of the turn and have the whiplash into the straight. Theres a surge that carries you further down the straight and she has a natural disposition to do that.

By now, Asher-Smith is accustomed to having a lead and she must stay in front to win gold. While Asher-Smith is by no means slow by any standard of 200m running, this is the part of the race where someone like Miller-Uibo is potentially able to gain ground.

With the body naturally starting to fatigue, it is a question of who can maintain their form in the crunch moment and it is something Asher-Smith has improved over the years by working on her speed endurance.

Dina is a fierce competitor. Aside from her articulate, smart, smiley disposition, when it comes to competing, shes fierce. Theres no messing around and she takes no prisoners. Here, she will sense that shes clear and she will want to maintain her lead.

The big strength that Dina has is her speed endurance. When you have high frequency, what usually happens at this point is your legs start to build with lactic acid and you tail off.

Shes got outstanding speed endurance so she gets out of the turn and is capable of maintaining that speed and cadence right through to the finish line.

Thats got better through the years. When she was a junior there was a lot of leakage in her movements. As shes got stronger everything has become more stable. Her technique has become tidier and cleaner.

What comes with that is you lose your technique later in the race, so she should be able to run a good 400m now if she wanted.

This is about maintaining technique along the straight while starting to fatigue. Everyone will be tiring, even though it looks like Dina isnt.

She has good arm drive, good knee lift and just keeps her body in the same position as when she came off the bend. That helps to keep a nice, balanced stride length. A lot of it is about keeping balance very well.

Shes probably tired at this point, but the adrenaline is kicking in. Shes not going to let anyone or anything get in her way. She barely loses any control at all.

It is at this point that the colour of the medals are decided. As with the first part of the home straight, Asher-Smith will be hoping to maintain her form as much as possible when everyone is naturally decelerating approaching the finish line.

Improving her strength and training over longer distances as she has grown older has meant she can maintain her technique the longer the race goes on.Very few athletes will have been able to keep up with her to this point.

This is all about maintaining your form and not faltering. Keep your high knees, keep your high hips and keep driving those arms back and forth.

Her lower limb is not flicking out too much, at a stage where some of her rivals will be sat back on themselves, which causes them to lose momentum. Dina does a great job of staying on top of herself.

This part of the race is about whether youve done the winter work on speed endurance. It comes from doing 250m, 300m and 350m sets in training, or repetitive 200m sets at 95 per cent.

Dina has always run an exceptional bend and she has fearlessness to attack, but now its about having that adult strength, which has kicked in. Shes a woman now, not a little girl.

She manages to hold form, while the other athletes start to fall off and struggle to maintain intensity.

The hardest bit for the majority of sprinters is being able to maintain your speed in the final 30m and not tie up. At that point you cant find any more speed, so youre just trying to maintain what you have. Shes brilliant at doing that.

If you havent gone past Dina by the last 30m or 40m, theres a strong chance shes winning the race.

Its about lifting the hips and keeping your arms long. If you keep your arms long, your legs will follow. If she were to shorten up her arms, her stride length would get shorter and more fatigue would come.

She is using quality speed endurance. Her arm action, which kept her legs long, is exceptional and she is able to keep relaxed.

Shell have done all the speed endurance work: a little bit of pain in the winter, medals in the summer. Thats the pay off.

I know Dina has done a couple of 400m races during the early part of her career and Id love to see her do more because I know she could be phenomenal, even if shed probably hate it.

You can have all the speed in the world but by the time you get to 150m, the whole race can fall apart if you do not have that strength. Shes prone to a very slight overstriding right at the end but shes usually already clear at that point.

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Dina Asher-Smith and her 94 steps to immortality - The Telegraph

From ancient myths to science fiction, Our attraction to eternal youth is well documented. But there are creatures that seem code is cracked To prevent, or even reverse, aging, and they are very real. They are, or we believe they may be, biologically immortal. This means that unless killed by a predator, disease, or drastic change in their environment, they can live indefinitely.

scientists try to find The secrets of these mysterious creatures To see if they can help us control our aging process.

Heres a look at these three amazing creatures:

capacity of these insects have been known to reproduce when split into two parts since the late 19th century, but these animals went viral in 2012When the University of Nottingham published a study on their possible immortality.

Planaria is a type of flatworm that found all over the world and One Unlimited ability to regenerate stem cells, dry grass Two types: Some reproduce sexually and some asexually by dividing into two.

Scientists from the University of Nottingham studied both types and found that Asexuals may be able to rejuvenate their DNA. At some point in our lives, our DNA, like that of most animals, reaches its limit in cell division and Our body starts deteriorating.

On the other hand, the planets, Enzyme content is high This protects their cells from aging, and when they reproduce they can replenish these reserves, leading scientists to believe they may be immortal.

this alien looking creature It is a freshwater invertebrate With a tubular body and mesh around the mouth. It uses these tentacles to sting its prey, which are insects, small crustaceans and other invertebrates.

Hydras were one of the first organisms examined by Dutch scientist Antoine van Leeuwenhoek, who built a microscope with a spherical lens with significant magnification to view these creatures. Soon after, on the observations of Swiss scientist Abraham Tremblay Them and their regenerative superpowers He marked the beginning of a new era in the field of biology.

like planets, Hydra are also able to regenerate their own body parts., The key to understanding its potential immortality lies in its stem cells, which can self-renew indefinitely.

In fact, the entire body of a hydra appears to be made of self-renewing stem cells, Scientists Who Observed Hydras Clusters For Years Couldnt Find Any signs of aging on them

In 2018, researchers at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) estimated that Hydras can become immortal because of their ability to control Something called a transposon gene, also known as a jumping gene. These are genes that can jump from one part of the genome to another, causing mutations. When we are young, our body is able to control these genes, but as As we grow up, we find it difficult to keep them under control. Instead, they may be able to repress these genes forever.

The so-called immortal jellyfishor, to use its scientific name, Turritopsis doubletLives in sea water. First discovered in the Mediterranean in the 1880s, it can now be found in many other places due to ballast water released from ships. It is small and likes to eat plankton, Caviar and small mollusks.

amazing thing about The type of jellyfish is that it can restart its life cycle, When a jellyfish is stressed, it transforms at an earlier stage of life, This is sometimes compared to a frog turning into a tadpole or a butterfly turning into a caterpillar, and is due to a process called transdifferentiation.

Transdifferentiation occurs when a fully formed specialized adult cell transforms into another type of adult cell. This process remains a mystery to scientists. and thats not all. When the jellyfish returns to its previous life stage as a polyp, It also creates more organisms with the same genetic code, so basically She also clones herself by rejuvenating.

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What Are The 3 "immortal" Animals That Fascinated Scientists For Decades And Why - Nation World News

By Zoe Sottile, CNN

(CNN) -- If just one diamond isn't enough, SWA Diamonds might have the perfect ring for you.

The India-based jewelry company broke a Guinness World Records title for the most diamonds set in one ring with a whopping 24,679 diamonds.

The spectacular ring was designed to mimic a pink oyster mushroom, according to a Guinness World Records news release.

"The mushroom represents immortality and longevity," Abdul Gafur Anadiyan, SWA Diamonds' managing director, said in the release.

The intricate structure of the ring was created by pouring liquid gold into a plastic mold to form 41 unique mushroom petals. Then, each petal was adorned by hand with natural diamonds.

The glitzy ring weighs in at 340 grams -- or three-quarters of a pound -- and is valued at $95,243, according to the release. A team of independent gemologists verified the ring, and the world record was awarded May 5.

SWA Diamonds' mushroom-inspired creation has almost double the number of diamonds as the previous record-holder. Harshit Bansal achieved the title in 2020 with a floral design bejeweled with 12,638 diamonds.

The-CNN-Wire & 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.

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This mushroom-shaped ring broke the world record for most diamonds in a single ring - WDJT

I changed the title of this piece a little before pressing the Send key from Do Corporates Have a Soul, to the one cited above, to make the argument and to discuss it extensively, without restricting to a single segment of the business world.

As a first step there has to be some understanding about what is soul? In the most simplistic term, soul is referred to that non-tangible part of a human being, considered by many as spiritual, that has immortality associated with it. It is that part of any existence present in every person that lives, feels, thinks, and wills (this is a century dictionary definition). All attributes that are in the realm of non-material constitute the soul. Ancient understanding of the soul meant the presence of at least three elements; intelligence, reason and passion.

Soul resides within. Philosophers and sages have always considered without any evidence, physical or otherwise, the heart of the human being as the repository of the soul. Aristotle referred to the soul as being distinct in at least three dimensions; a part that deals with nutrition and growth, a portion that creates a sense of reasoning and an appetitive portion that monitors, controls and governs desire.

Immortality is a sine qua non of the souls existence. Socrates too believed that the soul is immortal. Death is unknown to the soul. Death is related to the physical self where the body once the soul has left or deserted it decays - from dust to dust. Death hence is seen as the separation of the soul from the body. Soul precedes physical existence and remains eternal, even once the physical (material) existence is over. Plato defines the soul as a simple, pure, unorganised, uncompounded, invisible, rational entity. The soul in its original form is pure and divine our manner of living, either adds to its nobility and purity or it contaminates the soul with impurities.

Without leaning heavily towards religious interpretations and definitions of the soul it is easy to be conclusive about the unanimity that exists between philosophers and religious pundits, that the soul is eternal and immortal. Collins refers, Soul is the part of you that consists of your mind, character, thoughts and feelings. Collectively when we use terms like the soul of the nation, we generally mean to refer to its political, economic and social conditioning, that is reflective of its core nature, beliefs and values. Soul therefore is about the emotion, moral nature of individuals. It excites sentiments towards spirituality which in turn, is potentially a moral force.

The human conditioning is to seek a purpose in life which once defined with some clarity has to be backed by working upon the naturally endowed skills and balance. Since the business world is about interconnectedness, the endeavor has to be to bring out the best of behavior and attitude to the workplace. In doing so, it is of critical importance to have in place not merely an enabling environment but an atmosphere of congeniality that provokes positivity in reactions to business challenges. All opinions must remain open to revision, and certainly not aversion. It is an innate impulse of the humankind to arrive at some point of his/her life at something higher than natural state. Emerson in one of his essays puts across a similar thought with powerful eloquence; To the Poet, to the Philosopher, to the Saint, all things are friendly and sacred, all events profitable, all days holy, all men divine.

The discernment of a manager in being able to see the invisible, to hear the unsaid or inaudible or even experiencing (touch) the intangible is the quest to attain a higher pitch in spirituality must acquire the status of being the cornerstone of corporate values, if the institution is to be reckoned as one that has a soul. Victor Hugo (the Les Misrables) states: There is one spectacle grander than the sea, that is the sky; there is one spectacle grander than the sky, that is the interior of the soul.

An entity, where the corporate culture is embedded with humane touch, will have an environment of spirituality, which in turn creates a soul for the organisation. In an essay on virtues and vices, James Wallace (1978) categorized the ethics of virtue into three categories; self-discipline virtues, such as courage and patience; conscientiousness virtues, such as honesty and fairness; and virtues that extol benevolent attitude towards others, such as kindness and compassion. The presence of these virtues, in individuals, teams, groups. Entities or even nations have the amazing potential to influence the success of an idea, a concept, an objective, a goal or a vision. Any person who contributes to the happiness of others around him/her is bound to develop their own cognitive ability to remain happy. An unhappy team cannot have (at least not for long) a happy leader; their collective unhappiness will eventually drown his happiness because the team (unhappy) would perhaps, refuse to deliver the desired results.

There are several global institutions who value the presence of a soul in their work environments; mentioning their names in this piece might tantamount to advertising, so they best remain unnamed. However, since it is now defunct and doesnt exist, BCC was one organisation that in a short span of time had developed a distinct corporate soul. The institution was shut down, it did not collapse and the reason for its being made defunct were more global, political and economic interests and not its management values.

Its closure was almost 31 years back, yet its mark of unique corporate soul and spirituality, exists in the form of practices adopted by its members in different institutions across geographies proves that soul is eternal, the brick and mortar, the financial institution however, is dead and buried. To make the soul a living one at all times, there is no effort required to allocate time and energy, it is a practice that one develops a part of inherent nature.

My daughter, who works overseas, in a five-star hotel chain, has enriched me with an example of practical and focused attention, where her organisation has put in place humane policies She informed me that her headquarters sends regular updates and bulletins on the imperative need for paying attention to the mental wellness of staff; visibly demonstrating a duty of care towards them and also ensuring that there is no corporate intimidation. As an example, she said, if a performing staff member, on any particular day cannot respond to an internal email, from colleagues or supervisors, with remarks like; Im feeling burnt-out today. Will revert tomorrow. Nothing can be held against the staff member.

Further since pandemic has brought into play with heightened awareness of their rights, HR cannot be bound to do work outside of defined hours. It is their choice to do more from home at any given time, of their convenience. So long the work assigned is completed no action can be taken on other counts, sans of course, deliberate or obstinate insubordination.

Living organisations, work towards making their employees enabled to do what they are best at; this is done with a two-fold objective, firstly it is inspirational and secondly it creates happiness and for the flourishment of the corporate soul, happiness and wellness are critical dynamis, which means to develop into a mature version of whatever they (people) are or even their creative potentials and abilities.

Management have to usher an atmosphere that will bring about in their organisations and the associated people, moral sufficiency, which means, being true to themselves. In being true to themselves, staff would be compelled to see the impact of their current work upon the future of the organisation which in effect would lend solidity to the strengthening of the soul of the organisation. Entities non-tangible values can exist beyond its tangible existence. Those organisations who bring into play this type of thinking strategy that bring or infuse the ability of the soul into their work and productivity.

It is always the attention to basics, whose presence will ensure the fostering of the corporate soul. Simple habits of listening more and talking less; giving space considered as safe psychological area; hence creating an environment where winning is never individualistic promotes the soulful organisation.

Any organisation, worth its salt that lacks or is devoid of soul; is already a dead matter. Corporates die too. All dead matter decays. Leaders and managers must endeavor to not only create the soul and the organisation, but through persistent and focused policies provide vitamins for its growth. Only the soul sustains, everything else decimates, decays, etc.

The writer is a freelance columnist

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Do businesses have a soul - The News International