Soft systems methodology (SSM) is an organised way of thinking that's applicable to problematic social situations and in the management of change by using action. It was developed in England by academics at the Lancaster Systems Department on the basis of a ten-year action research programme.

Overview

The Soft Systems Methodology was developed primarily by Peter Checkland, through 10 years of research with his colleagues, such as Brian Wilson. The method was derived from numerous earlier systems engineering processes, primarily from the fact traditional 'hard' systems thinking was not able to account for larger organisational issues, with many complex relationships. SSM has a primary use in the analysis of these complex situations, where there are divergent views about the definition of the problem.

These complex situations are known as "soft problems". They are usually real world problems where the goals and purposes of the problem are problematic themselves. Examples of soft problems include: How to improve the delivery of health services? and How to manage homelessness with young people? Soft approaches take as tacit that people's view of the world will change all the time and their preferences of it will also change.

Depending on the current circumstances of a situation, trying to agree on the problem may be difficult as there might be multiple factors to take into consideration, such as all the different kinds of methods used to tackle these problems. Additionally, Peter Checkland had moved away from the idea of 'obvious' problems and started working with situations to make concepts of models to use them as a source of questions to help with the problem, soft systems methodologies then started emerging to be an organised learning system.

Purposeful activity models could be declared using worldviews, meaning they were never models of real-world action. Still, those relevant to disclosure and argument about real-world action led to them being called epistemological devices that could be used for discourse and debate. The distinction between the everyday world and systems thinking was to draw attention to the conscious use of systems language in developing intellectual devices which were used to structure debates or an exploration of the problem situation being addressed.

In its 'classic' form the methodology consists of seven steps, with initial appreciation of the problem situation leading to the modelling of several human activity systems that might be thought relevant to the problem situation. By getting all the relevant people who are the decision-makers in this situation to come together, sit down in discussion and exploration about the definition of the problem. Only then will the decision makers in said situation will more likely arrive at a mutual agreement which will settle any arguments or problems and help get to the solution over exactly what kind of changes could be either systemically desirable and feasible in the situation at hand.

Later explanations of the ideas give a more sophisticated view of this systemic method and give more attention to locating the methodology with respect to its philosophical underpinnings. It is the earlier classical view which is most widely used in practice (created by Peter Checkland). A common criticism of this earlier methodology is that it follows an approach that is too linear. Checkland himself agreed that the earlier methodology is 'rather bald'. Most advanced SSM analysts  will agree, though, that the classical view is an easy way for inexperienced analysts to learn the SSM methodology.

SSM has been successfully used as a business analysis methodology in various fields. Real-world examples of SSM's wide range of applicability include research applying SSM in the sugar industry leading to improvements in business partner relationships, successful use as an approach in project management by directly involving stakeholders or aiding in business management by improving communication between stakeholders. It has proven to be a useful analysis approach to teaching and learning processes, as it does not require a specific problem to be identified as its starting point – which has led to "outside of the box" suggestions for improvement. SSM was even used by the UK government as part of the revaluation of their Structured Systems Analysis and Design Method (SSADM) system development methodology.

Even professional researchers who are to take the change for face value structure of thinking, show the same tendency to distort perceptions of the world rather than change the mental structure which we give our bearings with. Failure of classic systems in rich 'management' problem situations during the research programme led to examining the adequacy of the systems thinking.

The methodology has been described in several books and many academic articles.

SSM remains the most widely used and practical application of systems thinking, and other systems approaches such as critical systems thinking have incorporated many of its ideas.

Representation evolution
SSM had a gradual development process of the methodology as a whole from 1972 to 1990. During this period of time, four different representations of SSM were designed, becoming more sophisticated and at the same time less structured and broader in scope.

Blocks and arrows (1972)
The first studies in the research programme were carried out in 1969, and the first account of what became SSM was published in a paper three-years later titled "Towards a systems-based methodology for real-world problem solving" (Checkland 1972). In this paper, soft systems methodology is presented as a sequence of stages with iteration back to previous stages.The sequence was as follows: analysis, root definition of relevant systems, conceptualisation, comparison and definition of changes, selection of change to implement, design of change and implementation and appraisal.

The overall aim to implement change instead of introducing or enhancing a system implies that the thinking was ongoing as a result of these early experiences, even if the straight arrows in the diagrams and the rectangular blocks in some of the models can now be misleading!

Seven stages (1981)

Soft systems methodology (SSM) is a powerful tool that is utilised to analyse very complex organisational and systemic problems, that do not have an obvious solution. The methodology incorporates seven steps to come up with a viable solution for the problem defined. The seven steps are;
 Enter situation in which a problem situation(s) have been identified
 Address the issue at hand
 Formulate root definitions of relevant systems of purposeful activity
 Build conceptual models of the systems named in the root definitions : This methodology comes into place from raising concerns/ capturing problems within an organisation and looking into ways how it can be solved. Defining the root definition also describes the root purpose of a system.
 The comparison stage: The systems thinker is to compare the perceived conceptual models against an intuitive perception of a real-world situation or scenario. Checkland defines this stage as the comparison of Stage 4 with Stage 2, formally, "Comparison of 4 with 2". Parts of the problem situation analysed in Stage 2 are to be examined alongside the conceptual model(s) created in Stage 4, this helps to achieve a "complete" comparison.
 Problems identified should be accompanied now by feasible and desirable changes that will distinctly help the problem situation based in the system given. Human activity systems and other  aspects of the system should be considered so that soft systems thinking, and Mumford's needs can  be achieved with the potential changes. These potential changes should not be acted on until step 7  but they should be feasible enough to act upon to improve the problem situation.
 Take action to improve the problem situation

Two streams (1988)
The two-stream model of SSM recognizes the crucially important role of history in human affairs, and for a given group of people their history determines what will be noticed as significant and how it will be judged. This expression of SSM is presented as an approach embodying not only a logic-based stream of analysis (via activity models) but also a cultural and political stream which enable judgements to be made about the accommodations between conflicting interests which might be reachable by the people concerned and which would enable action to be taken.

This particular expression of SSM removes the dividing line between the world of the problem situation and the systems thinking world.

Four main activities (1990)
The four-activities model is iconic rather than descriptive and subsumes the cultural stream of analysis in the four activities. The four activities are:
The seven stage model gave an approach which applies real world situations, both large and small and public and private sector. The four main activities were created as a way to capture the more flexible use of SSM and it used to include more of the cultural aspect of the workplace into the concept of SSM. The four activities are used to show that SSM does not have to be used rigidly; it's there to show real life and not be constrained. The four main activities should be seen as an individual concept rather than a descriptive which incorporates the cultural stream of analysis.

 Finding out about a problem situation, including culturally/politically
 Formulating some relevant purposeful activity models: Creating and drawing specific  diagrammatic illustrations of activity processes that occur in an organisation, which shows the relevant processes that take place in a structured order, and depicts any problem situation visually by showing the flow of one action to another. An example of this would be a diagram of a Soft Systems Methodology method, which is a  'Conceptual Model', which is a representation of a systems' human actions,  or an 'Architecture System Map', which is a visual representation of the implementation of sections of a software system.
 Debating the situation, using the models, seeking from that debate both:
 changes which would improve the situation and are regarded as both desirable and (culturally) feasible, and
 the accommodations between conflicting interests which will enable action
 Taking action in the situation to bring about improvement

CATWOE

In 1975, David Smyth, a researcher in Checkland's department, observed that SSM was most successful when the root definition included certain elements. These elements, captured in the mnemonic CATWOE, identified the people, processes and environment that contribute to a situation, issue or problem that required analyzing.

This is used to prompt thinking about what the business is trying to achieve. In further detail, CATWOE helps explore a system by underlining the roots which involve turning the inputs into outputs. CATWOE helps businesses as it analyses a gap between current and useful systems. Business perspectives help the business analyst to consider the impact of any proposed solution on the people involved. This mainly involves stakeholders which allows them to test assumptions they have made as stakeholders will all have different opinions about certain problems and opportunities. CATWOE's method helps gain better and achievable results, as well as avoiding additional problems using six elements.
The six elements of CATWOE are:

 Customers – Who are the beneficiaries of the highest level business process and how does the issue affect them?
 Actors - The person or people directly involved in the transformation (T) part of CATWOE (Checkland & Scholes, 1999, p. 35). Implementation and involvement by the actors allows for the input to be transformed into an output (Checkland & Scholes, 1999, p. 35). Actors are also stakeholders as their actions can affect the transformation process and the system as a whole. As actors are directly involved, they also have a 'holon' by which they interpret the world outside (Checkland & Scholes, 1999, p. 19) and so how they view the situation would impact their work and success.
 Transformation process – Change, in one word, is the centre of the transformation system; the process of the transformation is more important for the business solution system. This is because the change is what the industry 5.0 sustainability system intends. The purpose behind the transformation system where change is applied holds value. For example, when converting grapes into wine the purpose for Change is to supply to grape consumers more value of the grape (product), thus sustaining the product value systemically. What is the transformation that lies at the heart of the system - transforming grapes into wine, transforming unsold goods into sold goods, transforming a societal need into a societal need met? This means change, in one word, is the centre of the transformation system; the process of becoming is more important than the business solution system. This is because the change is what the industry 2.0 systemic sustainability system practice purpose solves. The purpose behind the transformation system where change is provides the change, thus the results. For example when converting grapes into wine the purpose for Change is to supply to members of the public interest or involvement in grapes more value of the product, thus sustaining the product value more systemically.
 Weltanschauung (or Worldview) – What is the big picture and what are the wider impacts of the issue? "The word Weltanschauung is a German word that has no real English equivalent. It refers to "all the things that you take for granted" and is related to our values". But the closest translation would be "world view", which is the collective summary of the stakeholders belief that gives meaning to the root definition. Model of the human activity system as a whole.
 Owner – Who owns the process or situation being investigated and what role will they play in the solution?
 Environmental constraints – What are the constraints and limitations that will impact the solution and its success?

Human activity system

A human activity system can be defined as "notional system (i.e. not existing in any tangible form) where human beings are undertaking some activities that achieve some purpose".

Within most systems there will be many human activity systems integrated within it to form the whole system. Human activity systems can be used in SSM to establish worldviews (Weltanschauung) for people involved in problematic situations. The assumption with all human activity systems is that all actors within them will act accordingly with their own worldviews.

See also

 Enterprise modelling
 Hard systems
 Holism
 List of thought processes
 Problem structuring methods
 Rich picture
 Structured systems analysis and design method
 Systems theory
 Systems philosophy

References

Further reading

Books
 Avison, D., & Fitzgerald, G. (2006). Information Systems Development. methodologies, techniques & tools (4th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
 Wilson, B. and van Haperen, K. (2015) Soft Systems Thinking, Methodology and the Management of Change (including the history of the systems engineering department at Lancaster University), London: Palgrave MacMillan. .
 Checkland, P.B. and J. Scholes (2001) Soft Systems Methodology in Action, in J. Rosenhead and J. Mingers (eds), Rational Analysis for a Problematic World Revisited. Chichester: Wiley
 Checkland, P.B. & Poulter, J. (2006) Learning for Action: A short definitive account of Soft Systems Methodology and its use for Practitioners, teachers and Students, Wiley, Chichester.
 Checkland, P.B. Systems Thinking, Systems Practice, John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 1981, 1998.
 Checkland, P.B. and S. Holwell Information, Systems and Information Systems, John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 1998.
 Wilson, B. Systems: Concepts, Methodologies and Applications, John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 1984, 1990.
 Wilson, B. Soft Systems Methodology, John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 2001.

Articles
 Dale Couprie et al. (2007) Soft Systems Methodology Department of Computer Science, University of Calgary.
 Mark P. Mobach, Jos J. van der Werf & F.J. Tromp (2000). The art of modelling in SSM, in papers ISSS meeting 2000.
 Ian Bailey (2008) MODAF and Soft Systems. white paper.
 Ivanov, K. (1991). Critical systems thinking and information technology. - In J. of Applied Systems Analysis, 18, 39-55. (ISSN 0308-9541). A review of soft systems methodology as related to critical systems thinking.
 Michael Rada (2015-12-01) . white paper, INDUSTRY 5.0 launch.
 Michael Rada (2015-02-03) . white paper, INDUSTRY 5.0 DEFINITION.

External links

 Peter Checkland homepage.
  Models for Change Soft Systems Methodology . Business Process Transformation, 1996.
 Soft systems methodology Action research and evaluation on line, 2007.
 Checkland and Smyth's CATWOE and Soft Systems Methodology, Business Open Learning Archive 2007.

Systems theory
Methodology
Enterprise modelling
Problem structuring methods

Soft systems methodology


The Italian city-states were numerous political and independent territorial entities that existed in the Italian Peninsula from antiquity to the formation of the Kingdom of Italy in the late 19th century.

The ancient Italian city-states were Etruscan (Dodecapolis), Latin, most famously Rome, and Greek (Magna Graecia), but also of Umbrian, Celtic and other origins. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, urban settlements in Italy generally enjoyed a greater continuity than settlements in western Europe. Many of these cities were survivors of earlier Etruscan, Umbrian and Roman towns which had existed within the Roman Empire. The republican institutions of Rome had also survived.

Some feudal lords existed with a servile labour force and huge tracts of land, but by the 11th century, many cities, including Venice, Milan, Florence, Genoa, Pisa, Lucca, Cremona, Siena, Città di Castello, Perugia, and many others, had become large trading metropoles, able to obtain independence from their formal sovereigns. Some of these cities grew in importance and became duchies and maritime empires.

Antiquity

The cities of Magna Graecia and of Etruria are among the earliest examples of city-states in Italy. The Latin settlement of Rome also was a city-state, founded in the 753 BC. Rome eventually created many colonies and municipi on earlier Etruscan, Umbrian, or Celtic settlements throughout Italy. The network of Roman cities in Italy survived the fall of the Western Roman Empire and provided the basis for the re-emergence of city-states in the Medieval period.

Medieval and modern period

Among the earliest Medieval city-states of Italy, that already started to emerge in the 7th century, were the Duchy of Naples, Duchy of Amalfi, Gaeta and the Republic of Venice which, although nominally under Byzantine control, were effectively independent. The Duchy of Spoleto and the Duchy of Benevento were under Lombard control.

Communes
The other early Italian city-states to appear in northern and central Italy arose as a result of a struggle to gain greater autonomy during the rule of the Holy Roman Empire. The Lombard League was an alliance that included at its apex most of the cities of northern Italy including Milan, Piacenza, Cremona, Mantua, Crema, Bergamo, Brescia, Bologna, Padua, Treviso, Vicenza, Verona, Lodi, Reggio Emilia and Parma, although its membership changed through time. Other city-states were associated to these "commune" cities, like Genoa, Turin and, in central Italy, the city states of Florence, Pisa, Lucca, Siena, Ancona, Città di Castello, Perugia, Terni, Assisi among others.

Duchies
South of Rome and the Papal States were the duchies of Salerno, Amalfi, Duchy of Naples and Duchy of Gaeta. Other independent cities were Bari and Trani, which in 1130 were united in the newly created Norman Kingdom of Sicily.

Maritime republics

Amalfi, Gaeta and Venice in the 11th century were already autonomous maritime republics. Around 1100, Genoa, Pisa and Ancona emerged as independent maritime republics too: trade, shipbuilding and banking helped support their powerful navies in the Mediterranean in those medieval centuries.

Difference from northern Europe

Between the 12th and 13th centuries, Italy was vastly different from feudal Europe north of the Alps. The Peninsula was a melange of political and cultural elements, not a unified state.

The very mountainous nature of Italy's landscape was a barrier to effective inter-city communication. The Po plain was an exception: it was the only large contiguous area, and most city states that fell to invasion were located there. Those that survived the longest were in the more rugged regions, such as Florence or Venice, which was protected by its lagoon.

The rugged terrain of the Alps prevented the Holy Roman Emperors or various German princes and lords from attacking the northern part of Italy, safeguarding the country from permanent German political control. Largely for these reasons, no strong monarchies emerged as they did in the rest of Europe. Authority of the Holy Roman Empire over northern Italian territory, especially after the year 1177, was de facto only nominal. Instead emerged the autonomous (sometimes de facto independent) city-states.

While those Roman, urban, republican sensibilities persisted, there were many movements and changes afoot. Italy first felt the changes in Europe from the 11th to the 13th centuries. Typically there was:
 a rise in population―the population doubled in this period (the demographic explosion)
 an emergence of huge cities (Venice, Florence and Milan had over 100,000 inhabitants by the 13th century in addition to many others such as Genoa, Bologna and Verona, which had over 50,000 inhabitants)
 the rebuilding of the great cathedrals
 substantial migration from country to city (in Italy the rate of urbanization reached 20%, making it the most urbanized society in the world at that time)
 an agrarian revolution
 the development of commerce

Income

It is estimated that the per capita income of northern Italy nearly tripled from the 11th century to the 15th century. This was a highly mobile, demographically expanding society, fueled by rapidly expanding commerce.

In the 14th century, just as the Italian Renaissance was beginning, Italy was the economic capital of Western Europe: the Italian States were the top manufacturers of finished woolen products. With the Bubonic Plague in 1348, the birth of the English woolen industry, and general warfare, Italy temporarily lost its economic advantage. By the late 15th century Italy was again in control of trade along the Mediterranean Sea. It found a new niche in luxury items like ceramics, glassware, lace and silk as well as experiencing a temporary rebirth in the woolen industry.

Italy never regained its strong hold on textiles. Though it was the birthplace of banking, by the 16th century German and Dutch banks began taking away business. The discovery of the Americas as well as new trade routes to Africa and India by the Portuguese, which made Portugal the leading trading power, brought about the shift of economic power from Italy to Portugal in the 16th century, from Portugal to the Netherlands in the 17th century, and from the Netherlands to the United Kingdom in the 18th century.

Literacy and numeracy

By the 13th century, northern and central Italy had become the most literate society in the world. More than one-third of the male population could read in the vernacular (an unprecedented rate since the decline of the Western Roman Empire), as could a small but significant proportion of women.

The Italian city states were also highly numerate, given the importance of the new forms of bookkeeping that were essential to the trading and mercantile basis of society. Some of the most widely circulating books, such as the Liber Abaci by Leonardo Fibonacci of Pisa, included applications of mathematics and arithmetic to business practice or were business manuals based on sophisticated numeracy.

Indeed, Luca Pacioli helped create the banking system of the Italian city-states with double-entry bookkeeping. His 27-page treatise on bookkeeping contained the first known published work on that topic, and is said to have laid the foundation for double-entry bookkeeping (of Genoese merchants) as it is practised today.

Communes

During the 11th century in northern Italy a new political and social structure emerged: the city-state or commune. The civic culture which arose from this urbs was remarkable. In some places where communes arose (e.g. Britain and France), they were absorbed by the monarchical state as it emerged.  They survived in northern and central Italy as in a handful of other regions throughout Europe to become independent and powerful city-states.

In Italy the breakaway from their feudal overlords occurred in the late 12th century and 13th century, during the Investiture Controversy between the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor: Milan led the Lombard cities against the Holy Roman Emperors and defeated them, gaining independence (battles of Legnano, 1176, and Parma, 1248; see Lombard League).

Some Italian city-states became great military powers very early on. Venice and Genoa acquired vast naval empires in the Mediterranean and Black Seas, some of which threatened those of the growing Ottoman Empire. During the Fourth Crusade (1204), Venice conquered three-eights of the Byzantine Empire.

The Maritime Republics were one of the main products of this new civic and social culture based on commerce and exchange of knowledge with other areas of the world outside western Europe. The Republic of Venice and the Republic of Genoa for example, had important trade communications with the Muslim and Byzantine world and this helped the initial development of the Italian Renaissance.

By the late 12th century, a new and remarkable society had emerged in Northern Italy; rich, mobile, expanding, with a mixed aristocracy and urban borghese (burgher) class, interested in urban institutions and republican government. But many of the new city-states also housed violent factions based on family, confraternity and brotherhood, which undermined their cohesion (for instance the Guelphs and Ghibellines).

Princely states

By 1300, most of these republics had become princely states dominated by a Signore. The exceptions were the Republics of Venice, Florence, Genoa, Lucca, and a few others, which remained republics in the face of an increasingly monarchic Europe. In many cases by 1400 the Signori were able to found a stable dynasty over their dominated city (or group of regional cities), obtaining a nobility title of sovereignty by their formal superior. For example in 1395 Gian Galeazzo Visconti bought the title of Duke of Milan from the King Wenceslaus for 100,000 gold florins.

Regional states
In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, Milan, Venice, and Florence were able to conquer other city-states, creating regional states. The 1454 Peace of Lodi ended their struggle for hegemony in Italy, attaining a balance of power (see Italian Renaissance).

At the beginning of the 16th century, apart from some city-states like Genoa, Lucca or San Marino, only the Republic of Venice was able to preserve its independence and to match the European monarchies of France and Spain and the Ottoman Empire (see Italian Wars).

See also
 History of Italy
 Medieval commune
 Imperial Italy
 Repubbliche Marinare
 Guelphs and Ghibellines
 Italian Renaissance
 San Marino
 Vatican City

Notes

Citations

References
 "Background to the Italian Renaissance", Washington State University
 "The Rise of the Italian City-States"
 "Italy's City-States", End of Europe's Middle Ages, University of Calgary
 "City-states in Italy", Web Gallery of Art
 Waley, Daniel; Dean, Trevor (2022). The Italian City-Republics. Routledge (fifth edition)
 Jones, Philip (1997). The Italian City-State. From Commune to Signoria. Oxford: Clarendon Press

it:Città-stato italiane

Italian city-states


Juan Pablo Cafiero (born 9 July 1953, San Isidro, Buenos Aires Province) is an Argentine politician and the Argentine Ambassador to the Vatican since 2008. He has served as a National Deputy and government minister, and is the son of Peronist Antonio Cafiero.

In his youth, Cafiero was an activist in the Peronist Youth and headed the Justicialist Party of San Isidro. In 1989 he was elected as a National Deputy for the Party, but the following year he was one of the 'Group of 8', progressive Peronists opposed to the neo-liberal policies of President Carlos Menem. The Group split from the Justicialist Party to create the Frente Grande and subsequently FrePaSo which formed part of the Alliance for Work, Justice and Education which took Fernando de la Rúa to the Presidency.

Cafiero had returned to Congress in 1997, representing FrePaSo. He was first Vice President of the Chamber. In 2001, he agreed to join the troubled government of De la Rúa as Minister for Social Development. When the Presidency collapsed, Cafiero was kept in his position by President Eduardo Duhalde.

In 2003, he was part of the movement which brought Néstor Kirchner to the Presidency, kirchnerism being much closer to Cafiero's progressive Peronism. He was appointed Minister of Justice and Security in the Buenos Aires Province under Governor Felipe Solá.

Cafiero was appointed as Ambassador to the Holy See in October 2008. President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's first choice, Alberto Iribarne, was rejected by the Vatican as he had been divorced.

Cafiero is married with four children. He is one of ten children. A brother, Mario Cafiero, has also been a national deputy. His son, Santiago, has been Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers since 2019, in the cabinet of President Alberto Fernández.

References

People from San Isidro, Buenos Aires
Front for a Country in Solidarity politicians
Justicialist Party politicians
1953 births
Living people
Argentine diplomats
Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Pope Pius IX
Ambassadors of Argentina to the Holy See
Members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies elected in Buenos Aires Province
Ministers of social welfare of Argentina

Juan Pablo Cafiero


All Growed Up was a telefilm and VHS episode of the Nickelodeon animated series Rugrats. It was made to celebrate the series' 10th anniversary. It was made in July 21, 1999 and aired on July 21, 2001. It is about the Rugrats being 6 years older and going to school in September 1998. The episode led to a spin-off show called All Grown Up! which also aired on Nickelodeon.

Overview
Tommy is 9 years old, Dil is 8 years old, Angelica, Susie (Angelica's best friend) and Chuckie (former boyfriend of 18 year old Nicole) a 11 years old, Harold, Phil and Lil and Kimi are 10 years old, and Samantha (who was in Tommy's gang and Chuckie's love interest and Angelica's best friend) is 14 years old in this episode. Singing Emica was voiced by Bets Malone, Singing Tommy was voiced by Stacy Ferguson and Singing Angelica was voiced by Olivia Hack.

Rugrats
2001 television episodes

All Growed Up


Poperinge (; ,  ; ) is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders, Flemish Region, and has a history going back to medieval times. The municipality comprises the town of Poperinge proper and surrounding villages. The area is famous for its hops and lace.

The town
Poperinge is situated about 13 km (8 miles) to the west of Ypres (Ieper). The region is famous for growing hops and furnishes 80% of Belgian production. The town is home to the national hop museum and is called "hops city", hoppe stad in Dutch, a play on hoofd stad, the word for capital. A triennial hop festival and parade is held in the month of September. The local brew is known as Hommel (which means hops in the West Flanders dialect).

The carillon in the tower of the town's oldest church, Sint-Bertinuskerk, was noted as one of the most beautiful in Flanders in medieval times. It was destroyed during wartime in 1677 and restored in 1781.

Administration
In addition to the town centre of Poperinge, the municipality also comprises the submunicipalities (so-called "deelgemeenten") of Krombeke, Proven, Reningelst, Roesbrugge-Haringe and Watou. The hamlets of Abele and Sint-Jan-Ter-Biezen are also located within the municipality, but they do not have the status of "deelgemeente", since they were not independent municipalities before the mergers of municipalities which took place in Belgium in the 1970s.

Roesbrugge-Haringe actually comprises two separate villages, Roesbrugge and Haringe. The hamlet of Abele is located on the border with France and partially lies on French territory.

The municipality borders many rural villages, and because of the long border is also close to many French municipalities.

History
Archaeological finds in the area date local habitation back to the Neolithic period. Under the Romans a link was made to it from the road between Cassel and Aardenburg. In the time of the Franks it appeared under the name Pupurningahem and was made subject to the ecclesiastical benefice of Saint Omer in the mid-7th century. The Count of Flanders, Dietrich of Alsace, granted the town a charter in 1147 at the request of the abbot. From this time it began to thrive as a cloth-making centre and, in order to accommodate the growing population, the churches of Saint John and of Our Lady were added in 1290 to the already existing Sint-Bertinuskerk.

In 1322 Louis de Nevers forbade cloth-making outside Ypres, which led the citizenry to join a revolt against him the following year. Nor did they ever submit to this restraint on their prosperity and were forever finding new ways to evade the restriction. Their resistance during this period gained them the nickname of keikoppen (cobble-heads), a term first recorded in 1341, when the Ypres militia took revenge on the town.

During the disturbances associated with the Hundred Years War, Poperinge suffered from the shifting allegiances of the Counts of Flanders and their commercial consequences. When they supported the French, the wool trade with England was interrupted. In the course of the consequent revolt, the town was sacked and burned by French troops in 1382. Then in 1436 it suffered the same fate from an English army. In 1513, at a time of declining prosperity, much of the town was again destroyed by fire, and then in 1563 the same happened again. During this period Poperinge was stirred up to support the Protestant cause and took part in the iconoclastic fury of 1566. It was in the consequent fighting and persecution that the town and its trade were finally ruined.

Matters were made worse by the wars between the French and the Dutch for control of the region. By the treaty of Nijmegen in 1678 the town passed into French hands and then returned to the Spaniards by the treaty of Ryswick in 1697, before being ceded to the Austrians in 1713 by the treaty of Utrecht. In 1794 it was absorbed by revolutionary France into the département of Lys. Following the defeat of Napoleon it was included in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, from which Belgium revolted in 1830. Since then Poperinge has repaired its fortunes by concentrating on hop production, the growing of which was first introduced in the 15th century.

During World War I, the town was one of only two in Belgium not under German occupation. It was used to billet British troops and also provided a safe area for field hospitals. Known familiarly as "Pop", it was just behind the front line and formed an important link for the soldiers and their families, especially through the rest house known as Talbot House (or "Toc H"). A grim reminder of that time remains within the town hall, where two death cells are preserved, and outside in the courtyard, where there is a public execution post used by firing squads. Another reminder is the location of a number of military cemeteries on the outskirts of the town with the graves of Canadian, British, Australian, French, German, US servicemen and men of the Chinese Labour Corps. One of these is Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery for soldiers who had been wounded near Ypres and later died in the large Allied casualty clearing stations located in the area.

Literary associations
Poperinge is mentioned by two major English poets. Geoffrey Chaucer makes it the birthplace of his Flemish knight in "The Tale of Sir Thopas" from the Canterbury Tales. Some 150 years later John Skelton follows a line in Flemish with the mention that 'In Popering grew pears when parrot was an egg' in his enigmatic poem "Speak Parrot". The poem is an attack on Cardinal Wolsey and the line is taken to refer to his ambition to become Pope.

The town has also been associated with several Neo-Latin poets. Jacques May (Jacobus Majus) was born in Poperinge and left a Latin verse epistle in sapphics dated 1563. Later in the century Maximiliaan de Vriendt, who was born elsewhere, wrote a poem that praised the town and its churches:
Non formosa pales, non hospitae in urbe napeae,
Non agiles radii, Palidiique coli
Non celebres baiae (quae dos tua propria) tantis
Nominibus celebrem te, Poperinga vehunt:
Quantum larga manus, pietasque insigne avorum,
In superos templis testificata sacris.
Omnia de nobis praedantur fata: Tonanti
Quas damus, has solas semper habemus opes.

The Flemish poet Gislain de Coninck, who was born in the town, translated the Latin poems of Charles Wynkius in Himni, Quorum Usus Est In Ecclesiastico Dei Cultu, and the two were published together in 1573. Then in the following century there were two more Latin poets from the town, Joannes Bartholomaeus Roens and Petrus Wenis (1648-1726). Wenis published Gheestelycken nachtegael (The Spiritual Nightingale, 1698) on the miracle that restored a still-born child to life in 1479, an event associated with the statue of Our Lady in Sint-Janskerk that is still celebrated.

In modern times, the town was referred to in one of the epigrams in Charles Baudelaire's Amœnitates Belgicæ. In "Une Béotie belge" the sophisticated French-speakers of Brussels look down on the rustic Poperinghe of their Flemish compatriots. In the following century, the town is the subject of the imagist night piece "Poperinghe 1917" by the Canadian poet W. W. E. Ross.

Notable people
Dirk Frimout (born 1941), Belgium's first astronaut; the town park is named after him
Anne Provoost (born 1964), Flemish novelist

Twin towns – sister cities

Poperinge is twinned with:
 Frielendorf, Germany
 Hythe, England, United Kingdom
 Rixensart, Belgium
 Wolnzach, Germany
 Žatec, Czech Republic

Gallery

References

External links

Official website - Information available in Dutch and limited information available in English, French and German
Altmeyer, Jean-Jacques, Notice historique sur la ville de Poperinghe, Ghent 1840

Municipalities of West Flanders

Poperinge


Butorides is a genus of  small herons. It contains three similar species, the green heron or green-backed heron, Butorides virescens, the lava heron (Butorides sundevalli), and the striated heron, Butorides striatus. A fossil species, Butorides validipes, is known from the Early Pleistocene of Florida in the United States. Butorides is from Middle English Butor "bittern" and Ancient Greek -oides, "resembling".

Adults of both extant species are about  long, and have a blue-black back and wings, a black cap and short yellow legs. Juveniles are browner above and streaked below, and have greenish-yellow legs.

The species have different underpart colours, chestnut with a white line down the front in green heron, and white or grey in striated. Both breed in small wetlands on a platform of sticks often in shrubs or trees, sometimes on the ground. The female lays three to five eggs. Both parents incubate for about 20 days until hatching, and feed the young birds which take a further three weeks to fledge.

Butorides herons stand still at the water's edge and wait to ambush prey. They mainly eat small fish, frogs and aquatic insects. They sometimes drop food on the water's surface to attract fish.

Taxonomy and range

The Butorides herons were formerly considered one species, but are now normally split as above, with the green heron breeding in eastern North America, Central America, the West Indies and the Pacific coast of Canada and the United States, and striated heron in the Old World tropics from west Africa to Japan, and in South America.

Birds in central Panama with buff necks have been considered to be hybrids between the two species, but the occurrence of similar birds beyond the range of migratory green herons means that there is still doubt about the species' limits of the Butorides herons.

References

 A guide to the birds of Costa Rica (1989), by F. Gary Stiles and Alexander Frank Skutch

Bird genera
Herons
Extant Pleistocene first appearances
Taxa named by Edward Blyth

Butorides


Radney Muckleroy Foster (born July 20, 1959) is an American country music singer-songwriter, musician and music producer. Initially a songwriter in Nashville, Tennessee, Foster made his recording debut as part of the Foster & Lloyd duo, recording three studio albums and with nine singles on the country charts.

Foster began his solo career in 1992 and his album Del Rio, TX 1959 produced four consecutive Top 40 hits. However, his commercial success waned with the release subsequent albums such as Labor of Love (1995), See What You Want to See (1999), Are You Ready for the Big Show?, Another Way to Go (2002) and This World We Live In (2006). Overall, Foster has had thirteen songs on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including the Top Ten hits "Just Call Me Lonesome" (#10, 1992) and "Nobody Wins" (#2, 1993). His songs have been recorded by Gary Allan, Sara Evans, Keith Urban, Hootie and the Blowfish, and Jack Ingram.

Early life and education
Foster was born in Del Rio, Texas, as the second of four children. His father was a lawyer who sang and played guitar and by age 12, Foster began playing the guitar as well, and by 14, he began writing songs.

After graduating from high school, Foster attended University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, where he became a member of the Gamma Sigma chapter of Phi Gamma Delta. He dropped out in 1979 and at the advice of veteran songwriter Randy Goodrum, moved to Nashville to pursue a music career. Foster later returned to college  and completed his degree, while performing at local venues in his spare time.

Career

1985 to 1990
Foster moved to Nashville in 1985 and found work at MTM Publishing Company as a songwriter. There he met Bill Lloyd and they co-wrote the song "Since I Found You" which became a Top Ten hit for the Sweethearts of the Rodeo. In 1986 Foster formed the duo Foster & Lloyd and they received a recording contract with RCA Records Nashville. Between 1987 and 1990, they recorded three studio albums and had nine singles on the country charts. The highest-peaking of these was their debut single  "Crazy Over You", a No. 4 hit in 1987. The two parted ways in 1990 to pursue solo careers. Later, in 1990, their song "Don't Go Out" was released by Tanya Tucker in 1990 as a duet with T. Graham Brown.

1991 to 2000
Two years later Foster signed with Arista Nashville and released the album Del Rio, TX 1959 (named for Foster's place and year of birth). The album produced two consecutive Top Ten hits: "Just Call Me Lonesome" and "Nobody Wins", which respectively reached No. 10 and No. 2 on the Billboard country charts. Two later singles, "Easier Said Than Done" and "Hammer and Nails", also reached Top 40, peaking at No. 20 and No. 34, respectively.

In 1994, Foster began work on his second album, which was originally to be titled Never Say Die. After the lead single "Labor of Love" failed to make the Top 40, Arista delayed the album's release so that it would not compete with the compilation album Mama's Hungry Eyes: A Tribute to Merle Haggard, to which Foster had contributed the track "The Running Kind". Steve Ripley, who recorded on Arista as lead singer of The Tractors at the time, remixed the following single "Willin' to Walk" and the album was released under the title Labor of Love in April 1995. Later that year, Foster contributed the song "Close Up the Honky Tonks" to the AIDS benefit album Red Hot + Country produced by the Red Hot Organization.

Foster's third album was 1999's See What You Want to See, featuring a more pop-oriented sound and backing vocals from Darius Rucker of Hootie & the Blowfish. The album produced a charting single in "Godspeed (Sweet Dreams)", a duet with Emmylou Harris which peaked at No. 74 on the country charts and was recorded by the Dixie Chicks in 2003. Two of the album's cuts were later covered by Keith Urban, who released his renditions as singles: "Raining on Sunday" from Golden Road, and "I'm In" from Defying Gravity. The latter was also a single for The Kinleys, whose version Foster produced, in 2000.

2001 to 2011
In 2001, Foster signed to Dualtone Records and released Are You Ready for the Big Show?, included the song "Texas in 1880", which Foster had originally recorded as a member of Foster & Lloyd. The new version featured Pat Green and peaked at No. 54 on the country charts. Foster's next album was 2002's Another Way to Go. One of its tracks, "A Real Fine Place to Start" (another collaboration with Ducas) became a No. 1 hit single for Sara Evans on her 2005 album Real Fine Place. Foster's released This World We Live In in 2006 but none of the songs made the country charts. In 2005, Foster released a website-only album titled And Then There's Me: The Back Porch Sessions containing 11 acoustic tracks. Foster produced two albums for the Randy Rogers Band: their 2006 album Just a Matter of Time and 2008's Randy Rogers Band.

Foster began his own music label called Devil's River. In September 2009 Foster released the album Revival under the band name "Radney Foster and the Confessions" and a feature-length DVD documentary on the making of the album.  The 90-minute film was co-produced by Foster and his wife.  Keith Urban recorded Foster's song "I'm In" for his 2009 album Defying Gravity and it became a No. 2 single.

In December 2010, Foster rejoined the Foster & Lloyd duo and they released the album "It's Already Tomorrow" in 2011.

Foster is the host of the music anthology series "Crossroads" on CMT.

2017
In early 2017, Foster starred in Troubadour, a country musical by Sugarland member Kristian Bush and playwright Janece Shaffer. The production took place in Atlanta, at the Tony Award-winning Alliance Theatre. Foster also appears in the 2017 film Beauty Mark.

In September 2017, Foster released For You To See The Stars, a CD/book duo. The collection of short stories is his first print publication and follows the stories on the CD, which included nine new songs and a special re-recording of "Raining on Sunday", Foster's single that was later recorded by Keith Urban for his album Golden Road.

For You To See The Stars is Foster at his classic storytelling best, both as a seasoned singer-songwriter and a soulful writer of prose. Although both components stand alone as separate pieces of art, they are meant to be enjoyed together. When coupled, the book and CD give fans a deeper insight into the subconscious of Foster's storytelling. Long-time Tennessean journalist Peter Cooper commented, "Radney Foster writes with uncommon depth of emotion, humor, empathy, and clarity. I'm going to ask him how he does it, and if he tells me I'll let you in on his secret. Until then, it's best that we read, wonder, and revel."

Personal life
A native of Del Rio, Texas, Foster moved to Tennessee to attend the University of the South at Sewanee. He lives in Nashville with his wife Cyndi and three children, Julien, Jackson, and Maureen.

Discography

Albums

Extended plays

Singles

Guest singles

Music videos

References

External links

1959 births
People from Del Rio, Texas
American male singer-songwriters
American country singer-songwriters
American country record producers
Arista Nashville artists
Dualtone Records artists
Living people
Sewanee: The University of the South alumni
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Country musicians from Texas
Country musicians from Tennessee
Record producers from Texas
Singer-songwriters from Tennessee
Foster & Lloyd members

Radney Foster


Sydenham is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Sydenham is located 8 kilometres south of Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of Inner West Council. Sydenham is surrounded by the suburbs of Marrickville, St Peters and Tempe.

History

Sydenham developed after the Illawarra railway line came through the area to Hurstville in the late 1800s. It was named after Sydenham, a suburb of London, for their similarities in their close proximity to the city and a railway junction. The station was originally known as Marrickville when it opened on 15 October 1884. It was changed to Sydenham on 19 March 1895 when a new line was being built to Bankstown and the first station was to be called Marrickville. The post office opened in April 1899 as Tempe Park and was only renamed Sydenham in 1964.

Marrickville Council proposed the Sydenham Creative Hub—a commercial area of bars, cafes and galleries—near Sydenham Station sometime after 2011. On 12 December 2017, the Inner West Council voted to shrink the proposed precinct to an area immediately adjacent to the Station only.

Sydenham has a number of heritage-listed sites, including Sydenham railway station.

Population
In the 2016 Census, there were 1,145 people in Sydenham. 51.9% of people were born in Australia and 51.0% of people only spoke English at home. The most common responses for religion were No Religion, 35.6%, Catholic 20.1%, Buddhism 11.9%, Not stated 9.3% and Eastern Orthodox 6.7%.

Transport
Sydenham railway station is a junction for three lines on the Sydney Trains network: the Illawarra, Airport & South and Bankstown lines, and contains a Sydney Metro line under construction as of 2023.

Former tram/light rail service

A cross country line connected the Cooks River Line and the Dulwich Hill line via Sydenham, operating along Railway Road and Sydenham Road in Sydenham.

Features
Sydenham is a small suburb extending southeast from the railway station to the Princes Highway. It has a mixture of residential and industrial developments. A small group of shops is located around the intersection of Unwins Bridge Road and Railway Road, close to Sydenham railway station. In the adjacent suburb of Marrickville, commercial developments are also located along Sydenham and Marrickville Roads close to the border with Sydenham. Marrickville Metro Shopping Centre is also very close to Sydenham.

Sydenham Green

Sydenham is directly under the flight path of Sydney Airport. To deal with noise complaints from residential properties between Unwins Bridge Road and the Princes Highway, the government compulsory acquired these properties and converted them into a recreational park. The park occupies a large portion of the small suburb. Sydenham Green is located on either side of Railway Road, named after the park of the same name in Sydenham, London. Two heritage buildings along Railway Road were retained, a sandstone terrace house and St Marys Church (which was later controversially demolished after a suspicious fire.) In the park, a series of oversized 'living room' sculptures – lamp, chairs and fireplace pays homage to the residential houses that formerly occupied the site.

Schools and Churches
Schools close to Sydenham are St Pius Catholic School , Enmore Road - Near Marrickville Metro, Tempe High School (Sydney) and Tempe Public School.  St Mary's Church was the first Coptic Church outside of Egypt, but was demolished in 2017.

References

External links
  [CC-By-SA]

Suburbs of Sydney
Inner West Council

Sydenham, New South Wales


Rama (; ; ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Being.

Rama was born to Kaushalya and Dasharatha in Ayodhya, the capital of the Kingdom of Kosala. His siblings included Lakshmana, Bharata, and Shatrughna. He married Sita. Though born in a royal family, Rama's life is described in the Hindu texts as one challenged by unexpected changes, such as an exile into impoverished and difficult circumstances, and challenges of ethical questions and moral dilemmas. Of all his travails, the most notable is the kidnapping of Sita by demon-king Ravana, followed by the determined and epic efforts of Rama and Lakshmana to gain her freedom and destroy the evil Ravana against great odds.

The entire life story of Rama, Sita and their companions allegorically discusses duties, rights and social responsibilities of an individual. It illustrates dharma and dharmic living through model characters.

Rama is especially important to Vaishnavism. He is the central figure of the ancient Hindu epic Ramayana, a text historically popular in the South Asian and Southeast Asian cultures. His ancient legends have attracted bhasya (commentaries) and extensive secondary literature and inspired performance arts. Two such texts, for example, are the Adhyatma Ramayana – a spiritual and theological treatise considered foundational by Ramanandi monasteries, and the Ramcharitmanas – a popular treatise that inspires thousands of Ramlila festival performances during autumn every year in India.

Rama legends are also found in the texts of Jainism and Buddhism, though he is sometimes called Pauma or Padma in these texts, and their details vary significantly from the Hindu versions. Jain Texts also mentioned Rama as the eighth balabhadra among the 63 salakapurusas. In Sikhism, Rama is mentioned as one of twenty-four divine avatars of Vishnu in the Chaubis Avtar in Dasam Granth.

Etymology and nomenclature
Rama is also known as Ram, Raman, Ramar, and Ramachandra (; , ). Rāma is a Vedic Sanskrit word with two contextual meanings. In one context, as found in Atharva Veda, as stated by Monier Monier-Williams, it means "dark, dark-colored, black" and is related to the term ratri, which means night. In another context in other Vedic texts, the word means "pleasing, delightful, charming, beautiful, lovely". The word is sometimes used as a suffix in different Indian languages and religions, such as Pali in Buddhist texts, where -rama adds the sense of "pleasing to the mind, lovely" to the composite word.

Rama as a first name appears in the Vedic literature, associated with two patronymic names – Margaveya and Aupatasvini – representing different individuals. A third individual named Rama Jamadagnya is the purported author of hymn 10.110 of the Rigveda in the Hindu tradition. The word Rama appears in ancient literature in reverential terms for three individuals:

 Parashu-rama, as the sixth avatar of Vishnu. He is linked to the Rama Jamadagnya of the Rigveda fame.
 Rama-chandra, as the seventh avatar of Vishnu and of the ancient Ramayana fame.
 Bala-rama, also called Halayudha, as the elder brother of Krishna both of whom appear in the legends of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.

The name Rama appears repeatedly in Hindu texts, for many different scholars and kings in mythical stories. The word also appears in ancient Upanishads and Aranyakas layer of Vedic literature, as well as music and other post-Vedic literature, but in qualifying context of something or someone who is "charming, beautiful, lovely" or "darkness, night".

The Vishnu avatar named Rama is also known by other names. He is called Ramachandra (beautiful, lovely moon), or Dasarathi (son of Dasaratha), or Raghava (descendant of Raghu, solar dynasty in Hindu cosmology). He is also known as Ram Lalla (Infant form of Rama).

Additional names of Rama include Ramavijaya (Javanese), Phreah Ream (Khmer), Phra Ram (Lao and Thai), Megat Seri Rama (Malay), Raja Bantugan (Maranao), Ramudu (Telugu), Ramar (Tamil). In the Vishnu sahasranama, Rama is the 394th name of Vishnu. In some Advaita Vedanta inspired texts, Rama connotes the metaphysical concept of Supreme Brahman who is the eternally blissful spiritual Self (Atman, soul) in whom yogis delight nondualistically.

The root of the word Rama is ram- which means "stop, stand still, rest, rejoice, be pleased".

According to Douglas Q. Adams, the Sanskrit word Rama is also found in other Indo-European languages such as Tocharian ram, reme, *romo- where it means "support, make still", "witness, make evident". The sense of "dark, black, soot" also appears in other Indo European languages, such as *remos or Old English romig.

Legends
This summary is a traditional legendary account, based on literary details from the Ramayana and other historic mythology-containing texts of Buddhism and Jainism. According to Sheldon Pollock, the figure of Rama incorporates more ancient "morphemes of Indian myths", such as the mythical legends of Bali and Namuci. The ancient sage Valmiki used these morphemes in his Ramayana similes as in sections 3.27, 3.59, 3.73, 5.19 and 29.28.

Birth
The ancient epic Ramayana states in the Balakanda that Rama and his brothers were born to Kaushalya and Dasharatha in Ayodhya, a city on the banks of Sarayu River. The Jain versions of the Ramayana, such as the Paumacariya (literally deeds of Padma) by Vimalasuri, also mention the details of the early life of Rama. The Jain texts are dated variously, but generally pre-500 CE, most likely sometime within the first five centuries of the common era. Moriz Winternitz states that the Valmiki Ramayana was already famous before it was recast in the Jain Paumacariya poem, dated to the second half of the 1st century CE, which pre-dates a similar retelling found in the Buddha-carita of Asvagosa, dated to the beginning of the 2nd century CE or prior.

Dasharatha was the king of Kosala, and a part of the solar dynasty of Iksvakus. His mother's name Kaushalya literally implies that she was from Kosala. The kingdom of Kosala is also mentioned in Buddhist and Jain texts, as one of the sixteen Maha janapadas of ancient India, and as an important center of pilgrimage for Jains and Buddhists. However, there is a scholarly dispute whether the modern Ayodhya is indeed the same as the Ayodhya and Kosala mentioned in the Ramayana and other ancient Indian texts.

Rama's birth, according to Ramayana, is an incarnation of God (Vishnu) as human. When demigods went to Brahma to seek liberation from Ravana's menance on the Earth (due to powers he had from Brahma's boon to him), Vishnu himself appeared and said he will incrarnate as Rama (human) and kill Ravana (since Brahma's boon made him invinsible from all, including God, except humans).

Youth, family and friends

Rama had three brothers, according to the Balakanda section of the Ramayana. These were Lakshmana, Bharata and Shatrughna. The extant manuscripts of the text describes their education and training as young princes, but this is brief. Rama is portrayed as a polite, self-controlled, virtuous youth always ready to help others. His education included the Vedas, the Vedangas as well as the martial arts.

The years when Rama grew up are described in much greater detail by later Hindu texts, such as the Ramavali by Tulsidas. The template is similar to those found for Krishna, but in the poems of Tulsidas, Rama is milder and reserved introvert, rather than the prank-playing extrovert personality of Krishna.

In the kingdom of Mithilā, Rāma wins a bow-stringing contest and thus the hand of king Janaka's daughter Sītā. After getting married, Rāma takes her back to Ayodhyā.

While Rama and his brothers were away, Kaikeyi, the mother of Bharata and the second wife of King Dasharatha, reminds the king that he had promised long ago to comply with one thing she asks, anything. Dasharatha remembers and agrees to do so. She demands that Rama be exiled for fourteen years to Dandaka forest. Dasharatha grieves at her request. Her son Bharata, and other family members become upset at her demand. Rama states that his father should keep his word, adds that he does not crave for earthly or heavenly material pleasures, and seeks neither power nor anything else. He informs of his decision to his wife and tells everyone that time passes quickly. Sita leaves with him to live in the forest, and Lakshmana joins them in their exile as the caring close brother.

Exile and war

Rama heads outside the Kosala kingdom, crosses Yamuna river and initially stays at Chitrakuta, on the banks of river Mandakini, in the hermitage of sage Vasishtha. During the exile, Rama meets one of his devotee, Shabari who happened to love him so much that when Rama asked something to eat she offered her ber, a fruit. But every time she gave it to him she first tasted it to ensure that it was sweet and tasty as a testament to her devotion. Rama also understood her devotion and ate all the half-eaten bers given by her. Such was the reciprocation of love and compassion he had for his people. This place is believed in the Hindu tradition to be the same as Chitrakoot on the border of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The region has numerous Rama temples and is an important Vaishnava pilgrimage site. The texts describe nearby hermitages of Vedic rishis (sages) such as Atri, and that Rama roamed through forests, lived a humble simple life, provided protection and relief to ascetics in the forest being harassed and persecuted by demons, as they stayed at different ashrams.

After ten years of wandering and struggles, Rama arrives at Panchavati, on the banks of river Godavari. This region had numerous demons (rakshashas). One day, a demoness called Shurpanakha saw Rama, became enamored of him, and tried to seduce him. Rama refused her. Shurpanakha retaliated by threatening Sita. Lakshmana, the younger brother protective of his family, in turn retaliated by cutting off the nose and ears of Shurpanakha. The cycle of violence escalated, ultimately reaching demon king Ravana, who was the brother of Shurpanakha. Ravana comes to Panchavati to take revenge on behalf of his family, sees Sita, gets attracted, and kidnaps her to his kingdom of Lanka (believed to be modern Sri Lanka).

Rama and Lakshmana discover the kidnapping, worry about Sita's safety, despair at the loss and their lack of resources to take on Ravana. Their struggles now reach new heights. They travel south, meet Sugriva, marshall an army of monkeys, and attract dedicated commanders such as Hanuman who was a minister of Sugriva. Meanwhile, Ravana harasses Sita to be his wife, queen or goddess. Sita refuses him. Ravana gets enraged and ultimately reaches Lanka, fights in a war that has many ups and downs, but ultimately Rama prevails, kills Ravana and forces of evil, and rescues his wife Sita. They return to Ayodhya.

Post-war rule, death and re-appearance

The return of Rama to Ayodhya was celebrated with his coronation. It is called Rama pattabhisheka, and his rule itself as Rama rajya described to be a just and fair rule. It is believed by many that when Rama returned people celebrated their happiness with diyas (lamps), and the festival of Diwali is connected with Rama's return.

Upon Rama's accession as king, rumours emerge that Sita may have gone willingly when she was with Ravana; Sita protests that her capture was forced. Rama responds to public gossip by renouncing his wife and asking her to prove her chastity in front of Agni (fire). She does and passes the test. Rama and Sita live happily together in Ayodhya, have twin sons named Kusha and Lava, in the Ramayana and other major texts. However, in some revisions, the story is different and tragic, with Sita dying of sorrow for her husband not trusting her, making Sita a moral heroine and leaving the reader with moral questions about Rama. In these revisions, the death of Sita leads Rama to drown himself. Through death, he joins her in afterlife. Depiction of Rama dying by drowning himself and then emerging in the sky as a six-armed incarnate of Vishnu is found in the Burmese version of Rama's life story called Thiri Rama.

Inconsistencies
Rama's legends vary significantly by the region and across manuscripts. While there is a common foundation, plot, grammar and an essential core of values associated with a battle between good and evil, there is neither a correct version nor a single verifiable ancient one. According to Paula Richman, there are hundreds of versions of "the story of Rama in India, Southeast Asia and beyond". The versions vary by region reflecting local preoccupations and histories, and these cannot be called "divergences or different tellings" from the "real" version, rather all the versions of Rama story are real and true in their own meanings to the local cultural tradition, according to scholars such as Richman and Ramanujan.

The stories vary in details, particularly where the moral question is clear, but the appropriate ethical response is unclear or disputed. For example, when demoness Shurpanakha disguises as a woman to seduce Rama, then stalks and harasses Rama's wife Sita after Rama refuses her, Lakshmana is faced with the question of appropriate ethical response. In the Indian tradition, states Richman, the social value is that "a warrior must never harm a woman". The details of the response by Rama and Lakshmana, and justifications for it, has numerous versions. Similarly, there are numerous and very different versions to how Rama deals with rumours against Sita when they return victorious to Ayodhya, given that the rumours can neither be objectively investigated nor summarily ignored. Similarly the versions vary on many other specific situations and closure such as how Rama, Sita and Lakshmana die.

The variation and inconsistencies are not limited to the texts found in the Hinduism traditions. The Rama story in the Jain tradition also show variation by author and region, in details, in implied ethical prescriptions and even in names – the older versions using the name Padma instead of Rama, while the later Jain texts just use Rama.

Dating

In some Hindu texts, Rama is stated to have lived in the Treta Yuga that their authors estimate existed before about 5,000 BCE. Archaeologist H. S. Sankalia, who specialised in Proto- and Ancient Indian history, find such estimate to be "pure speculation". A few other researchers place Rama to have more plausibly lived around 1250 BCE, based on regnal lists of Kuru and Vrishni leaders which if given more realistic reign lengths would place Bharat and Satwata, contemporaries of Rama, around that period. Sankalia dates various incidents of the Ramayana to have taken place as early as 1,500 BCE.

The composition of Rama's epic story, the Ramayana, in its current form is usually dated between 8th and 4th century BCE. According to John Brockington, a professor of Sanskrit at Oxford known for his publications on the Ramayana, the original text was likely composed and transmitted orally in more ancient times, and modern scholars have suggested various centuries in the 1st millennium BCE. In Brockington's view, "based on the language, style and content of the work, a date of roughly the fifth century BCE is the most reasonable estimate".

Appearance

Valmiki in Ramayana describes Rama as a charming, well built person of a dark complexion (varṇam śyāmam) and long arms (ājānabāhu, meaning a person whose middle finger reaches beyond their knee). In the Sundara Kanda section of the epic, Hanuman describes Rama to Sita when she is held captive in Lanka  to prove to her that he is indeed a messenger from Rama:

Iconography
Rama iconography shares elements of Vishnu avatars, but has several distinctive elements. It never has more than two hands, he holds (or has nearby) a bana (arrow) in his right hand, while he holds the dhanus (bow) in his left. The most recommended icon for him is that he be shown standing in tribhanga pose (thrice bent "S" shape). He is shown black, blue or dark color, typically wearing reddish color clothes. If his wife and brother are a part of the iconography, Lakshamana is on his left side while Sita always on the right of Rama, both of golden-yellow complexion.

Philosophy and symbolism
Rama's life story is imbued with symbolism. According to Sheldon Pollock, the life of Rama as told in the Indian texts is a masterpiece that offers a framework to represent, conceptualise and comprehend the world and the nature of life. Like major epics and religious stories around the world, it has been of vital relevance because it "tells the culture what it is". Rama's life is more complex than the Western template for the battle between the good and the evil, where there is a clear distinction between immortal powerful gods or heroes and mortal struggling humans. In the Indian traditions, particularly Rama, the story is about a divine human, a mortal god, incorporating both into the exemplar who transcends both humans and gods.

As a person, Rama personifies the characteristics of an ideal person (purushottama). He had within him all the desirable virtues that any individual would seek to aspire, and he fulfils all his moral obligations. Rama is considered a maryada purushottama or the best of upholders of Dharma.

According to Rodrick Hindery, Book 2, 6 and 7 are notable for ethical studies. The views of Rama combine "reason with emotions" to create a "thinking hearts" approach. Second, he emphasises through what he says and what he does a union of "self-consciousness and action" to create an "ethics of character". Third, Rama's life combines the ethics with the aesthetics of living. The story of Rama and people in his life raises questions such as "is it appropriate to use evil to respond to evil?", and then provides a spectrum of views within the framework of Indian beliefs such as on karma and dharma.

Rama's life and comments emphasise that one must pursue and live life fully, that all three life aims are equally important: virtue (dharma), desires (kama), and legitimate acquisition of wealth (artha). Rama also adds, such as in section 4.38 of the Ramayana, that one must also introspect and never neglect what one's proper duties, appropriate responsibilities, true interests, and legitimate pleasures are.

Literary sources

Ramayana
The primary source of the life of Rama is the Sanskrit epic Ramayana composed by Rishi Valmiki.

The epic had many versions across India's regions. The followers of Madhvacharya believe that an older version of the Ramayana, the Mula-Ramayana, previously existed. The Madhva tradition considers it to have been more authoritative than the version by Valmiki.

Versions of the Ramayana exist in most major Indian languages; examples that elaborate on the life, deeds and divine philosophies of Rama include the epic poem Ramavataram, and the following vernacular versions of Rama's life story:
 Ramavataram or Kamba-Ramayanam in Tamil by the poet Kambar. (12th century)
 Saptakanda Ramayana in Assamese by poet Madhava Kandali. (14th century)
 Krittivasi Ramayana in Bengali by poet Krittibas Ojha. (15th century)
 Ramcharitmanas in Awadhi by sant Tulsidas. (16th-century)
 Pampa Ramayana, Torave Ramayana by Kumara Valmiki and Sri Ramayana Darshanam by Kuvempu in Kannada
 Bhavartha Ramayana in Marathi by Sant Eknath. (16th-century)
 Ranganatha Ramayanam () by Ranganatha, and Ramayana Kalpavruksham by Viswanatha Satyanarayana in Telugu
 Vilanka Ramayana in Odia
 Eluttachan in Malayalam (this text is closer to the Advaita Vedanta-inspired rendition Adhyatma Ramayana).

The epic is found across India, in different languages and cultural traditions.

Adhyatma Ramayana
Adhyatma Ramayana is a late medieval Sanskrit text extolling the spiritualism in the story of Ramayana. It is embedded in the latter portion of Brahmānda Purana, and constitutes about a third of it. The text philosophically attempts to reconcile Bhakti in god Rama and Shaktism with Advaita Vedanta, over 65 chapters and 4,500 verses.

The text represents Rama as the Brahman (metaphysical reality), mapping all attributes and aspects of Rama to abstract virtues and spiritual ideals. Adhyatma Ramayana transposes Ramayana into symbolism of self study of one's own soul, with metaphors described in Advaita terminology. The text is notable because it influenced the popular Ramcharitmanas by Tulsidas, and inspired the most popular version of Nepali Ramayana by Bhanubhakta Acharya. This was also translated by Thunchath Ezhuthachan to Malayalam, which lead the foundation of Malayalam literature itself.

Ramacharitmanas
The Ramayana is a Sanskrit text, while Ramacharitamanasa retells the Ramayana in Awadhi, commonly understood in northern India by speakers of the several Hindi languages. Ramacharitamanasa was composed in the 16th century by Tulsidas. The popular text is notable for synthesising the epic story in a Bhakti movement framework, wherein the original legends and ideas morph in an expression of spiritual bhakti (devotional love) for a personal god.

Tulsidas was inspired by Adhyatma Ramayana, where Rama and other characters of the Valmiki Ramayana along with their attributes (saguna narrative) were transposed into spiritual terms and abstract rendering of an Atma (soul, self, Brahman) without attributes (nirguna reality). According to Kapoor, Rama's life story in the Ramacharitamanasa combines mythology, philosophy, and religious beliefs into a story of life, a code of ethics, a treatise on universal human values. It debates in its dialogues the human dilemmas, the ideal standards of behaviour, duties to those one loves, and mutual responsibilities. It inspires the audience to view their own lives from a spiritual plane, encouraging the virtuous to keep going, and comforting those oppressed with a healing balm.

The Ramacharitmanas is notable for being the Rama-based play commonly performed every year in autumn, during the weeklong performance arts festival of Ramlila. The "staging of the Ramayana based on the Ramacharitmanas" was inscribed in 2008 by UNESCO as one of the Intangible Cultural Heritages of Humanity.

Yoga Vasistha

Yoga Vasistha is a Sanskrit text structured as a conversation between young Prince Rama and sage Vasistha who was called as the first sage of the Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy by Adi Shankara. The complete text contains over 29,000 verses. The short version of the text is called Laghu Yogavasistha and contains 6,000 verses. The exact century of its completion is unknown, but has been estimated to be somewhere between the 6 century to as late as the 14 century, but it is likely that a version of the text existed in the 1 millennium.

The Yoga Vasistha text consists of six books. The first book presents Rama's frustration with the nature of life, human suffering and disdain for the world. The second describes, through the character of Rama, the desire for liberation and the nature of those who seek such liberation. The third and fourth books assert that liberation comes through a spiritual life, one that requires self-effort, and present cosmology and metaphysical theories of existence embedded in stories. These two books are known for emphasising free will and human creative power. The fifth book discusses meditation and its powers in liberating the individual, while the last book describes the state of an enlightened and blissful Rama.

Yoga Vasistha is considered one of the most important texts of the Vedantic philosophy. The text, states David Gordon White, served as a reference on Yoga for medieval era Advaita Vedanta scholars. The Yoga Vasistha, according to White, was one of the popular texts on Yoga that dominated the Indian Yoga culture scene before the 12th century.

Other texts

Other important historic Hindu texts on Rama include Bhusundi Ramanaya, Prasanna raghava, and Ramavali by Tulsidas. The Sanskrit poem Bhaṭṭikāvya of Bhatti, who lived in Gujarat in the seventh century CE, is a retelling of the epic that simultaneously illustrates the grammatical examples for Pāṇini's Aṣṭādhyāyī as well as the major figures of speech and the Prakrit language.

Another historically and chronologically important text is Raghuvamsa authored by Kalidasa. Its story confirms many details of the Ramayana, but has novel and different elements. It mentions that Ayodhya was not the capital in the time of Rama's son named Kusha, but that he later returned to it and made it the capital again. This text is notable because the poetry in the text is exquisite and called a Mahakavya in the Indian tradition, and has attracted many scholarly commentaries. It is also significant because Kalidasa has been dated to between the 4th and 5th century CE, suggesting that the Ramayana legend was well established by the time of Kalidasa.

The Mahabharata has a summary of the Ramayana. The Jainism tradition has extensive literature of Rama as well, but generally refers to him as Padma, such as in the Paumacariya by Vimalasuri. Rama and Sita legend is mentioned in the Jataka tales of Buddhism, as Dasaratha-Jataka (Tale no. 461), but with slightly different spellings such as Lakkhana for Lakshmana and Rama-pandita for Rama.

The chapter 4 of Vishnu Purana, chapter 112 of Padma Purana, chapter 143 of Garuda Purana and chapters 5 through 11 of Agni Purana also summarise the life story of Rama. Additionally, the Rama story is included in the Vana Parva of the Mahabharata, which has been a part of evidence that the Ramayana is likely more ancient, and it was summarised in the Mahabharata epic in ancient times.

Influence

Rama's story has had a major socio-cultural and inspirational influence across South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Few works of literature produced in any place at any time have been as popular, influential, imitated and successful as the great and ancient Sanskrit epic poem, the Valmiki Ramayana.
– Robert Goldman, Professor of Sanskrit, University of California at Berkeley.

According to Arthur Anthony Macdonell, a professor at Oxford and Boden scholar of Sanskrit, Rama's ideas as told in the Indian texts are secular in origin, their influence on the life and thought of people having been profound over at least two and a half millennia. Their influence has ranged from being a framework for personal introspection to cultural festivals and community entertainment. His life stories, states Goldman, have inspired "painting, film, sculpture, puppet shows, shadow plays, novels, poems, TV serials and plays."

Hinduism

Rama Navami

Rama Navami is a spring festival that celebrates the birthday of Rama. The festival is a part of the spring Navratri, and falls on the ninth day of the bright half of Chaitra month in the traditional Hindu calendar. This typically occurs in the Gregorian months of March or April every year.

The day is marked by recital of Rama legends in temples, or reading of Rama stories at home. Some Vaishnava Hindus visit a temple, others pray within their home, and some participate in a bhajan or kirtan with music as a part of puja and aarti. The community organises charitable events and volunteer meals. The festival is an occasion for moral reflection for many Hindus. Some mark this day by vrata (fasting) or a visit to a river for a dip.

The important celebrations on this day take place at Ayodhya, Sitamarhi, Janakpurdham (Nepal), Bhadrachalam, Kodandarama Temple, Vontimitta and Rameswaram. Rathayatras, the chariot processions, also known as Shobha yatras of Rama, Sita, his brother Lakshmana and Hanuman, are taken out at several places. In Ayodhya, many take a dip in the sacred river Sarayu and then visit the Rama temple.

Rama Navami day also marks the end of the nine-day spring festival celebrated in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh called Vasanthothsavam (Festival of Spring), that starts with Ugadi. Some highlights of this day are Kalyanam (ceremonial wedding performed by temple priests) at Bhadrachalam on the banks of the river Godavari in Bhadradri Kothagudem district of Telangana, preparing and sharing Panakam which is a sweet drink prepared with jaggery and pepper, a procession and Rama temple decorations.

Ramlila and Dussehra

Rama's life is remembered and celebrated every year with dramatic plays and fireworks in autumn. This is called Ramlila, and the play follows Ramayana or more commonly the Ramcharitmanas. It is observed through thousands of Rama-related performance arts and dance events, that are staged during the festival of Navratri in India. After the enactment of the legendary war between Good and Evil, the Ramlila celebrations climax in the Dussehra (Dasara, Vijayadashami) night festivities where the giant grotesque effigies of Evil such as of demon Ravana are burnt, typically with fireworks.

The Ramlila festivities were declared by UNESCO as one of the "Intangible Cultural Heritages of Humanity" in 2008. Ramlila is particularly notable in historically important Hindu cities of Ayodhya, Varanasi, Vrindavan, Almora, Satna and Madhubani – cities in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh. The epic and its dramatic play migrated into southeast Asia in the 1st millennium CE, and Ramayana based Ramlila is a part of performance arts culture of Indonesia, particularly the Hindu society of Bali, Myanmar, Cambodia and Thailand.

Diwali

In some parts of India, Rama's return to Ayodhya and his coronation is the main reason for celebrating Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights.

In Guyana, Diwali is marked as a special occasion and celebrated with a lot of fanfare. It is observed as a national holiday in this part of the world and some ministers of the Government also take part in the celebrations publicly. Just like Vijayadashmi, Diwali is celebrated by different communities across India to commemorate different events in addition to Rama's return to Ayodhya. For example, many communities celebrate one day of Diwali to celebrate the Victory of Krishna over the demon Narakasur.

Hindu arts in Southeast Asia

Rama's life story, both in the written form of Sanskrit Ramayana and the oral tradition arrived in southeast Asia in the 1st millennium CE. Rama was one of many ideas and cultural themes adopted, others being the Buddha, the Shiva and host of other Brahmanic and Buddhist ideas and stories. In particular, the influence of Rama and other cultural ideas grew in Java, Bali, Malaya, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.

The Ramayana was translated from Sanskrit into old Javanese around 860 CE, while the performance arts culture most likely developed from the oral tradition inspired by the Tamil and Bengali versions of Rama-based dance and plays. The earliest evidence of these performance arts are from 243 CE according to Chinese records. Other than the celebration of Rama's life with dance and music, Hindu temples built in southeast Asia such as the Prambanan near Yogyakarta (Java), and at the Panataran near Blitar (East Java), show extensive reliefs depicting Rama's life. The story of Rama's life has been popular in Southeast Asia.

In the 14th century, the Ayutthaya Kingdom and its capital Ayuttaya was named after the Hindu holy city of Ayodhya, with the official religion of the state being Theravada Buddhism. Thai kings, continuing into the contemporary era, have been called Rama, a name inspired by Rama of Ramakien – the local version of Sanskrit Ramayana, according to Constance Jones and James Ryan. For example, King Chulalongkorn (1853–1910) is also known as Rama V, while King Vajiralongkorn who succeeded to the throne in 2016 is called Rama X.

Jainism

In Jainism, the earliest known version of Rama story is variously dated from the 1st to 5th century CE. This Jain text credited to Vimalasuri shows no signs of distinction between Digambara-Svetambara (sects of Jainism), and is in a combination of Maharashtri and Sauraseni languages. These features suggest that this text has ancient roots.

In Jain cosmology, characters continue to be reborn as they evolve in their spiritual qualities, until they reach the Jina state and complete enlightenment. This idea is explained as cyclically reborn triads in its Puranas, called the Baladeva, Vasudeva and evil Prati-vasudeva. Rama, Lakshmana and evil Ravana are the eighth triad, with Rama being the reborn Baladeva, and Lakshmana as the reborn Vasudeva. Rama is described to have lived long before the 22nd Jain Tirthankara called Neminatha. In the Jain tradition, Neminatha is believed to have been born 84,000 years before the 9th-century BCE Parshvanatha.

Jain texts tell a very different version of the Rama legend than the Hindu texts such as by Valmiki. According to the Jain version, Lakshmana (Vasudeva) is the one who kills Ravana (Prativasudeva). Rama, after all his participation in the rescue of Sita and preparation for war, he actually does not kill, thus remains a non-violent person. The Rama of Jainism has numerous wives as does Lakshmana, unlike the virtue of monogamy given to Rama in the Hindu texts. Towards the end of his life, Rama becomes a Jaina monk then successfully attains siddha followed by moksha. His first wife Sita becomes a Jaina nun at the end of the story. In the Jain version, Lakshmana and Ravana both go to the hell of Jain cosmology, because Ravana killed many, while Lakshmana killed Ravana to stop Ravana's violence. Padmapurana mentions Rama as a contemporary of Munisuvrata, 20th tirthankara of Jainism.

Buddhism
The Dasaratha-Jataka (Tale no. 461) provides a version of the Rama story. It calls Rama as Rama-pandita.

At the end of this Dasaratha-Jataka discourse, the Buddhist text declares that the Buddha in his prior rebirth was Rama:

While the Buddhist Jataka texts co-opt Rama and make him an incarnation of Buddha in a previous life, the Hindu texts co-opt the Buddha and make him an avatar of Vishnu. The Jataka literature of Buddhism is generally dated to be from the second half of the 1st millennium BCE, based on the carvings in caves and Buddhist monuments such as the Bharhut stupa. The 2nd-century BCE stone relief carvings on Bharhut stupa, as told in the Dasaratha-Jataka, is the earliest known non-textual evidence of Rama story being prevalent in ancient India.

Sikhism

Rama is mentioned as one of twenty four divine incarnations of Vishnu in the Chaubis Avtar, a composition in Dasam Granth traditionally and historically attributed to Guru Gobind Singh. The discussion of Rama and Krishna avatars is the most extensive in this section of the secondary Sikh scripture. The name of Rama is mentioned more than 2,500 times in the Guru Granth Sahib and is considered as avatar along with the Krishna.

Among people
In Assam, Boro people call themselves Ramsa, which means Children of Ram.

In Chhattisgarh, Ramnami people tattooed their whole body with name of Ram.

Worship and temples

Worship

Rama is a revered Vaishanava deity, one who is worshipped privately at home or in temples. He was a part of the Bhakti movement focus, particularly because of efforts of 14th century North Indian poet-saint Ramananda who created the Ramanandi Sampradaya, a sannyasi community. This community has grown to become the largest Hindu monastic community in modern times. This Rama-inspired movement has championed social reforms, accepting members without discriminating anyone by gender, class, caste or religion since the time of Ramananda who accepted Muslims wishing to leave Islam. Traditional scholarship holds that his disciples included later Bhakti movement poet-saints such as Kabir, Ravidas, Bhagat Pipa and others.

Temples

Temples dedicated to Rama are found all over India and in places where Indian migrant communities have resided. In most temples, the iconography of Rama is accompanied by that of his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana. In some instances, Hanuman is also included either near them or in the temple premises.

Hindu temples dedicated to Rama were built by early 5th century, according to copper plate inscription evidence, but these have not survived. The oldest surviving Rama temple is near Raipur (Chhattisgarh), called the Rajiva-locana temple at Rajim near the Mahanadi river. It is in a temple complex dedicated to Vishnu and dates back to the 7th-century with some restoration work done around 1145 CE based on epigraphical evidence. The temple remains important to Rama devotees in the contemporary times, with devotees and monks gathering there on dates such as Rama Navami.

Some of Rama temples include:
 Rama temple, Ram Janmabhoomi, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh.
 Bhadrachalam Temple, Telangana.
 Kodandarama Temple, Vontimitta, Andhra Pradesh.
 Ramateertham Temple, Andhra Pradesh.
 Ramaswamy Temple, Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu
 Kola Valvill Ramar Temple, Tiruvelliyangudi, Tamil Nadu
 Veeraraghava Swamy Temple, Tiruvallur, Tamil Nadu
 Adi Jagannatha Perumal Temple, Tamil Nadu
 Mudikondan Kothandaramar Temple, Tamil Nadu.
 Vijayaraghava Perumal temple, Tamil Nadu.
 Punnainallur Kothandaramar Temple, Tamil Nadu
 Eri-Katha Ramar Temple, Tamil Nadu
 Sri Kalyana Ramaswamy temple, Tamil Nadu
 Kothandarama Temple, Thillaivilagam, Tamilnadu.
 Kothandaramaswamy Temple, Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu.
 Sri Kothanda Ramaswamy Temple, Tamil Nadu
 Kothandaramar temple, Vaduvur, Tamil Nadu
 Sri Yoga Rama temple, Tamil Nadu
 Kodandaramaswamy temple, Tamil Nadu
 Kothandaramaswami Temple, Nandambakkam, Tamil Nadu
 Triprayar Sriramaswami Kshetram, Triprayar, Kerala.
 Kalaram Temple, Nashik, Maharashtra.
 Raghunath Temple, Jammu.
 Ram Mandir, Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
 Kodandarama Temple, Chikmagalur, Karnataka.
 Odogaon Raghunath Temple, Odisha.
 Ramchaura Mandir, Bihar.
 Sri Rama Temple, Ramapuram, Kerala.
 Thakurdwara Bhagwan Narainji, Gurdaspur, Punjab
 Vilwadrinatha Temple, Thiruvilwamala, Kerala.

Popular culture

Rama has been considered as a source of inspiration and has been described as Maryāda Puruṣottama Rāma (). He has been depicted in many films, television shows and plays.

See also

 Ayodhya dispute
 Ram Mandir, Ayodhya
 Culture of India
 Genealogy of Rama
 Hindu philosophy
 Natyashastra
 Ram Nam
 Ram Statue
 Jai Shri Ram
 Ramayan (1987 TV series)
 Rama in Jainism
 Rama in Sikhism
 Ramayana
 Dashavatara
 Vaishnavism
 Erlang Shen

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

Sources

Further reading

External links

Ancient Indian culture
Mythological kings of Kosala
Avatars of Vishnu
Ayyavazhi mythology
Buddhist gods
Characters in the Mahabharata
Characters in the Ramayana
Creator gods
Heavenly attendants in Jainism
Hindu given names
Hindu gods
Solar dynasty
Names of God in Hinduism
Salakapurusa
Savior gods
Names of God in Sikhism
Kshatriya
Suryavansha

Rama


Ronald Bordessa is the current President Emeritus of the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, having served as its President and Vice Chancellor from 2006 to 2011, when on July 1 he was succeeded by Tim McTiernan.

Bordessa was born in Wales and educated at the University of Wales at Swansea and Liverpool University.

A geographer and academic of over 30 years, Bordessa was provost at Royal Roads University in British Columbia and was former dean of York University's Atkinson Faculty of Liberal & Professional Studies before his appointment at the UOIT.

Bordessa is a visiting professor of Geography at the University of Western Australia in Perth, Australia and serves the same role at Helsinki University in Finland, and at the University of Joensuu in Finland.

He is married to Mari Peepre, a former academic director at Royal Roads University.

References

External links
 Y-File Yorks Daily Bulletin

Living people
Canadian university and college chief executives
Alumni of the University of Wales
Alumni of the University of Liverpool
Canadian people of Welsh descent
1944 births

Ronald Bordessa


Our Lady of Banneux (), or Our Lady of the Poor, is the sobriquet given to the apparition of the Virgin Mary to Mariette Beco, an adolescent girl living in Banneux, Liège Province, Belgium. Between 15 January and 2 March 1933 Beco told her family and parish priest of seeing a Lady in white who declared herself to be the "Virgin of the Poor", saying I come to relieve suffering and Believe in me and I will believe in you.

The apparitions
Mariette Beco was 12 and a half years old when she reported Marian apparitions in 1933 in Banneux, Belgium, a hamlet about  southeast of the city of Liège. The Lady in White reportedly declared she was the Virgin of the Poor and said: "Believe in me and I will believe in you."

According to Mariette, she first saw the Blessed Virgin on the evening of Sunday 16 January 1933, as she was looking out the kitchen window. A woman in white stood in the garden and called to her to come out, but her mother would not let her. She is described as a young lady in the yard smiling at her. The woman was bent slightly forward and wearing a long white gown with a blue sash, and a transparent white veil. Three days later the woman in white reappeared and told Mariette she was "Our Lady of the Poor". The lady appeared eight times in all, the last on 2 March 1933.

In one of these visions, Mariette said the Lady asked her to plunge (push) her hands into a small spring [poussez vos mains dans l'eau], telling her the spring was for healing and "for all nations". Over time the site drew pilgrims. Today, the small spring yields about 2,000 gallons of water a day with many reports of miraculous healings.

Mariette, meanwhile, became the object of local derision, with even her grandmother and aunt making fun of her. Boys followed her around, calling her "Bernadette", kneeling and asking for her blessing. Her claims were subject to an official investigation from 1935 to 1937 by an episcopal commission. The evidence collected was submitted to Rome for further analysis. Meanwhile, a hospital was built in 1938.

In May 1942, Bishop Kerkhofs of Belgium's Diocese of Liege approved the veneration of Mary under the title of Our Lady of the Poor and approved the apparitions themselves in 1949. Although the Holy See gave the bishop permission to approve the apparition, the Holy See itself did not approve it.

After the apparitions, Mariette decided to remain a private person, married and led a quiet family life. A small chapel stands where the Virgin of the Poor is said to have requested it to be built.

Mariette died on 2 December 2011, at the age of 90. In 2008 she made a final statement about her role in the apparitions: "I was no more than a postman who delivers the mail.  Once this has been done, the postman is of no importance any more".

Veneration
As Our Lady of Banneux she has two titles: Our Lady of the Poor and Queen of Nations. Her feast day under these titles is January 15.

See also

 Our Lady of Beauraing
 Visions of Jesus and Mary

References

External links
 Our Lady of Banneux official website
 YouTube video of Our Lady of Banneux

Shrines to the Virgin Mary
Marian apparitions
Visions of Jesus and Mary
Roman Catholic shrines in Belgium

Our Lady of Banneux


In Italy, veterinary support personnel do not hold any official state recognition. People with several years of experience and training in animal clinics can present themselves as "veterinary technicians".
There are not accredited programs by l'Associazione Nazionale Medici Veterinari Italiani (ANMVI-the Italian veterinary medical association) and there is not a national exam. Although no formal education is required, since 2001 there are various programs of study:
 A two-year private (diploma awarding) course developed by ABIVET srl accredited from ACOVENE (Accreditation Committee for Veterinary Nurse Education) in 2007. This school also provides distance learning.
 Three year (degree awarding) courses provided from faculties of veterinary medicine at various universities.
At this date there is not an official national association representing the interest of veterinary technicians but two private organizations provide courses, congresses, and continuing education:
 ATAV Veterinary auxiliary technicians association (Associazione tecnici ausiliari veterinari)
 TECNIVET Veterinary technicians association
(Melania Spica, VT, Tecnivet secretary, 1 Sep 2011).

References

External links
L'Associazione Nazionale Medici Veterinari Italiani (ANMVI)
Associazione Tecnici Ausiliari Veterinari
Associazione Tecnici e Medici Veterinari

Italy
Veterinary medicine in Italy

Paraveterinary workers in Italy


Alfonso Luis Herrera (1868–1942) was a Mexican biologist, author, educator and founder of several institutions in Mexico City. He conducted research into the origin of life in an attempt to develop a new, experimental science which he called plasmogeny.

Biography
Herrera was born in Mexico City, the son of a well-known naturalist. He studied pharmacy at the National School of Medicine, graduating in 1889 by which time he had already published several papers in Zoology and Ornithology. He became a teacher at the National Preparatory School (Escuela Nacional Preparatoria), the Military School and the "Normal School for Teachers" (Escuela Normal para Maestros) in Mexico. He also helped to found the Botanical Garden of Chapultepec Park (1922), Mexico City Zoo (1923 - now called Chapultepec Zoo), and the Biological Institute of the University of Mexico.

Herrera died in Mexico City in 1943.

Ideas
He developed an experimental science called plasmogeny, concerned with the origin of protoplasm, the living material of which all animals and plants are made. He reasoned that since life was the result of purely physico-chemical phenomena, it should be possible to create a structure with similar properties to natural protoplasm out of relatively simple organic and inorganic compounds in the laboratory. To this end he conducted experiments to create artificial cells ("protocells") using substances such as olive oil, sodium hydroxide, gasoline, and thiocyanate.

Books
He published his ideas in books such as Recueil des lois de la biologie générale ("Collection of the General Laws of Biology") in 1897 and Nociones de biología in 1904 which was reprinted in 1924 as Biología y plasmogenia ("Biology and Plasmogeny"). His ideas on plasmogeny were further elaborated in Una nueva ciencia – la plasmogenia ("A New Science – Plasmogeny", 1924) and a shorter version followed in 1932, La plasmogenia – nueva ciencia del origen de la vida ("Plasmogeny – The New Science of the Origin of Life"). His experiments were published in two scientific journals which he founded: Gaceta de Plasmogenia (in Spanish) and Bulletin du Laboratoire de Plasmogenie (in French). He also wrote a number of other scientific texts.

Several of his books have now appeared in English translation.

Eponyms
Three reptiles are named in his honor: Kinosternon herrerai (Herrera's mud turtle), Barisia herrerae (Herrera's alligator lizard), and Lampropeltis zonata herrerae (Todos Santos Island kingsnake).

See also
Sulphobes

References

Further reading
 Herrera, Alfonso L. Recueil des Lois de la Biologie Generale (Collection of the General Laws of Biology") 1897.
 Herrera, Alfonso L. ''Biologia y Plasmogenia" (Biology and Plasmogeny) 1924.

 Ponnamperuma, C. (ed.) Chemical Evolution: Structure and Model of the First Cell.

External links

Mexican biologists
Scientists from Mexico City
1942 deaths
1868 births
20th-century Mexican scientists

Alfonso L. Herrera