But for man, no rest and no ending. He must go
on, conquest beyond conquest. First this little planet and all
its winds and ways, and then all the laws of mind and matter that
restrain him. Then the planets about him, and, at last, out across
immensity to the stars. And when he has conquered all the deeps
of space, and all the mysteries of time, still he will be beginning.
H.G. Wells, 1936
|
The English Bible, Containing the
Old Testament and the New.
London: The Doves Press 1903-05.
Rosenwald Collection,
Rare Book and Special Collections Division (3)
|
Opening Genesis
This elongated initial letter and bold
rendering of "In the Beginning" in red ink make this one of
the most powerful and evocative titlepages in printing history.
T.J. Cobden-Sanderson, the founder of the Doves Press, commissioned
Edward Johnston to design the first page of this typographical
masterpiece. The Doves Press Bible is one of the monuments
of the Arts and Craft Movement that swept Great Britain and
America at the end of the nineteenthcentury.
|
The beginning, as the proverb says, is half the
whole.
Aristotle (384-322 BC)
Mandala of Auspicious Beginnings
This is the first mandala in a set of
139 that were painted in the nineteenth century to serve as
aids to a compilation of Mahayana Buddhist teachings. In Mahayana
Buddhism, the ideal is the Bodhisattva, one who has taken
the vow to become a Buddha, an enlightened one. The mandala,
a symbol of the universe in Buddhist cultures, depicts the
three great Bodhisattvas who represent the power, wisdom,
and compassion of the Buddhas. This mandala was placed first
in the collection to invoke the blessings of the Bodhisattvas,
and serve as a dedication to the entire collection.
|
Bsod-nams-rgya-mtsho.
"Three-Deity Mandala of the Auspicious
Beginning"
in Chibetto "mandara" shusei
(Tibetan Mandalas: The Ngor Collection).
Tokyo: Kodansha, 1983.
Reproduction. Japanese Collection,
Asian Division
(2)
Courtesy of Kodansha International Ltd., Tokyo
|
|
Zhao Boju.
Ba Xian (The Eight Immortals),
ca.1150.
Scroll painting.
Chinese Rare Book Collection,
Asian Division (2.1)
|
The Origins of Taoism
Taoism is one of the earliest religions
in the world and derives from the worship of nature. Established
during the Dong Han Dynasty (25-220) in China, it has influenced
all aspects of Chinese society for 1800years. The "eight immortals"
is the most famous folktale of Chinese Taoism. This rare scroll
depicts many events including the eight immortals' battle
with the Dragon King of the Ocean, shown here. In order to
tame the dragon, the eight immortals use their super powers
to move the soil of the great mountain of the east, to fill
the ocean.
|
Almost in the beginning was curiosity.
Isaac Asimov, 1965
The Koran's First Chapter
|
|
Koran.
Hand-copied in Arabic by
Naskhi Ayyub 'Ali Muhammad
Rahim al-Nisawi, n.d.
African and Middle Eastern
Division (1.2)
|
Koran.
Hand-copied in Arabic by
Kohazadeh Ahmad Rashid Safi.
Page 2
Decorated by Adham Gharbaldeh al-Balawi.
Probably Persian, nineteenth century.
African and Middle Eastern
Division (1)
|
|
This nineteenth-century hand-copied
Koran in Arabic is open to the Fatiha, the opening chapter
of Islam's holy book. In seven very short verses, the Fatiha
sums up man's relation to God in prayer. The first verse "In
the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful" is said out
loud by Muslims at the beginning of every major action they
undertake each day: before a prayer, before a meal, before
work, before travel, before a public speech, and so forth.
It is one of the most important phrases in the Arabic language.
|
|
|
