Ganesha Chaturthi is one of the largest Hindu festivals, held over an 11-day period every August or September in the Gregorian calendar. It is celebrated throughout India, but also in other countries around the world. This year it runs from Aug. 25 to Sept. 5.
The festival is celebrated in honor of the Hindu god Ganesha. Idols of the god are placed in temporary public shrines and in private houses. They are then paraded around the streets in a procession down to the nearest convenient body of water and immersed.
Ganesha is a major god in the Hindu pantheon, and is instantly recognizable because of his elephant head. He is considered as the god of beginnings, the remover of obstacles and the patron of arts and sciences. Ganesha emerged as a distinct deity as early as the 4th and 5th centuries AD, although the form he took incorporated earlier attributes from ancient Indian texts.
Photo: Reuters
照片:路透社
(Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)
印度象神節是最盛大的印度教節慶之一,在每年陽曆八月或九月連續舉行十一天。不僅印度舉國慶祝,在世界其他國家也有慶典。今年的象神節慶祝期間是八月二十五日至九月五日。
象神節是為了紀念印度神祇伽尼薩。伽尼薩神像先安置在臨時的公共神龕及民宅,然後抬出來沿街遊行,到附近的河川水域施行浸禮。
Photo: Reuters
照片:路透社
伽尼薩神是印度教眾神中的重要神祇,並因其獨特象頭而能夠立即辨認出。人們相信祂是起始之神,可以消除困難,並為藝術與科學的守護神。早在西元四到五世紀,伽尼薩神便以其獨特的形象存在,儘管其樣貌融合了更早期的印度經典的描述。
(台北時報編譯林俐凱譯)
Photo: EPA
照片:歐新社
A: Artificial intelligence technology has been causing controversy lately: a student was caught cheating with AI to win the grand prize in an art contest. B: That’s so absurd. Does this mean that AI paints better than humans? A: Maybe. Luckily, the student was later disqualified. B: And more absurdly, it’s becoming more and more popular to use AI technology to “resurrect” people. A: Yeah, some netizens even posted videos featuring the late singer CoCo Lee, who was “resurrected” by them with AI software. A: 人工智慧的爭議不斷,有學生違規使用AI參加美術展,甚至贏得首獎。 B: 真誇張,這是不是代表AI比人類還強大? A: 或許吧,幸好得獎資格被取消。 B: 還有更誇張的︰讓死者重現的「AI復活」技術越來越熱門。 A: 對啊,還有網友製作已故歌后李玟「復活」的影片呢! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
It’s no secret that Japanese people have a deep affection for noodles. Like in the rest of East Asia, noodles are an important staple food, second only to rice. Japanese people have enjoyed noodles for over 1,000 years. The first noodles came from China and were introduced around 800 CE. As time passed, noodles in Japan not only became widespread but also developed some unique Japanese characteristics. The three most popular types of noodles in Japan are ramen, soba, and udon. Ramen, typically made from wheat flour, is usually thin and firm. The dough is kneaded and left to
Rice is an essential ingredient in Taiwanese cuisine. Many foods are made of rice, adding more variety to our cooking, such as rice cake, or “gui.” Wagui is made by steaming rice flour batter in a bowl. The term “gui” refers to a type of food made from rice, while “wa” refers to a bowl. The pronunciation of “gui” in Taiwanese Hokkien is similar to the word for “nobility” in Chinese, so it is common for people to prepare various types of gui, including wagui, as offerings to the gods or ancestors,. 米是台灣重要的主食,用米製成的食品十分多元,豐富我們的飲食,如米做成的「粿」。粿的意思是米做成的糕點,碗粿是將在來米漿倒入碗中蒸熟,因而得名。粿因為音同「貴」,因此碗粿等粿食常用作供品祭拜神明和祖先。 nobility (n.) 高貴,高尚;貴族 offering (n.) 供品 While Taiwan may not be
Continued from yesterday(延續自昨日) https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang As with many aspects of Japanese culture, there is etiquette to follow when you enjoy noodles. To fully experience noodles like a local on your next visit to Japan, consider these simple guidelines. First, be careful where you put your chopsticks. Don’t leave them sticking up in the broth or set them at the side of the bowl. When you have finished eating or if you’re taking a break, place them on the chopstick rest next to the bowl. Also, it is impolite to wave chopsticks around or bring them above mouth-level. Second, don’t take too