Turgalas, in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, is a demon lord. He is known as the "Ebon Maw" and the "Hunger Eternal."
Description
Turgalas has two forms, one of which is a colossal-sized mass of shapeless flesh covered with eyes and mouths, like a gigantic gibbering mouther. The second one is that of a huge tuagathshnee, gangly green-skinned tanar'ri demons spawned by Turgalas.
History
The demon lord Turgalas came unto power in the Abyss thousands of years ago, ruling the 32nd layer, Sholo-Tovoth, the Fields of Consumption. Not surprisingly, Turgalas came into conflict with his fellow demon lords for supremacy of the Abyss. However, Turgalas' habit of consuming his own minions as readily as his enemies stymied his own base of power. He fled to the Prime Material Plane to escape before his enemies could destroy him, and there he fed upon the world of mortals. A vile cult, the Feeders of the Ebon Maw, evenutally came into being.
As Turgalas ravaged the Prime Material Plane with his incessant hunger, an unlikely alliance formed between the demon princes Demogorgon and Orcus. The Prince of Demons and the Prince the Undead had their own plans for the mortal world, none of which involved having it devoured by an ancient enemy. The two demon princes attacked the Ebon Maw in person. When Turgalas' followers opened a gate to allow the Ebon Maw to escape, Orcus and Demogorgon corrupted the magic, sending Turgalas to a void, where he is imprisoned to this day. The combined cults of the two demon princes then hunted down and destroyed Turgalas' followers, hoping to erase the memory of the Ebon Maw from mortal memory.
Recently, a wizard was fooled into summoning Turgalas, who despite being imprisoned, was able to manifest a portion of himself into the Prime Material Plane. Turgalas consumed the wizard and is now in the process of rebuilding his cult and to escape his prison.
Cult
The cult of Turgalas is called the Feeders of the Ebon Maw. Its surviving members were in hiding for the most part until recently. They believe the Ebon Maw is destined to consume the world, and they, the faithful, will be spared. They are also tyring to free Turgalas from his prison. One method to this end is a set of minor artifacts called The Fangs of Turgalas. They are a set of thirteen weapons which actually feed life force to Turgalas whenever they deliver a negative level or a killing blow. It is unknown how much life the Ebon Maw needs in order to escape, but the cult currently has recovered five of the artifacts.
Description
Turgalas has two forms, one of which is a colossal-sized mass of shapeless flesh covered with eyes and mouths, like a gigantic gibbering mouther. The second one is that of a huge tuagathshnee, gangly green-skinned tanar'ri demons spawned by Turgalas.
History
The demon lord Turgalas came unto power in the Abyss thousands of years ago, ruling the 32nd layer, Sholo-Tovoth, the Fields of Consumption. Not surprisingly, Turgalas came into conflict with his fellow demon lords for supremacy of the Abyss. However, Turgalas' habit of consuming his own minions as readily as his enemies stymied his own base of power. He fled to the Prime Material Plane to escape before his enemies could destroy him, and there he fed upon the world of mortals. A vile cult, the Feeders of the Ebon Maw, evenutally came into being.
As Turgalas ravaged the Prime Material Plane with his incessant hunger, an unlikely alliance formed between the demon princes Demogorgon and Orcus. The Prince of Demons and the Prince the Undead had their own plans for the mortal world, none of which involved having it devoured by an ancient enemy. The two demon princes attacked the Ebon Maw in person. When Turgalas' followers opened a gate to allow the Ebon Maw to escape, Orcus and Demogorgon corrupted the magic, sending Turgalas to a void, where he is imprisoned to this day. The combined cults of the two demon princes then hunted down and destroyed Turgalas' followers, hoping to erase the memory of the Ebon Maw from mortal memory.
Recently, a wizard was fooled into summoning Turgalas, who despite being imprisoned, was able to manifest a portion of himself into the Prime Material Plane. Turgalas consumed the wizard and is now in the process of rebuilding his cult and to escape his prison.
Cult
The cult of Turgalas is called the Feeders of the Ebon Maw. Its surviving members were in hiding for the most part until recently. They believe the Ebon Maw is destined to consume the world, and they, the faithful, will be spared. They are also tyring to free Turgalas from his prison. One method to this end is a set of minor artifacts called The Fangs of Turgalas. They are a set of thirteen weapons which actually feed life force to Turgalas whenever they deliver a negative level or a killing blow. It is unknown how much life the Ebon Maw needs in order to escape, but the cult currently has recovered five of the artifacts.
Rif Raf is a bar located in central Tel Aviv, Israel, not far from the Mediterranean Sea and from Allenby Street; very close to the famous Shalom Meir tower.
The Rif Raf was established in late 2004 and aims to present a different style from other bars in the area. Rif Raf has worked to develop a gritty underground glam and dandy style. It sees a wide mix of customers every week.
Owned by local celebrity Ran Oren and disc jockey Sivan Dachinger, who hosts music, live shows and karaoke nights.
As opposed to other pick-up bars in Tel Aviv such as the "Dada" or the "Abraksas" the Rif Raf is considered to be, essentially, a non-pickup place with a strong asexual motive. Main genre of population are art students and others semi-cultural figures.
Further reading
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* [http://food.walla.co.il/?w=/909/798420 Walla!Food] (from Haaretz)
The Rif Raf was established in late 2004 and aims to present a different style from other bars in the area. Rif Raf has worked to develop a gritty underground glam and dandy style. It sees a wide mix of customers every week.
Owned by local celebrity Ran Oren and disc jockey Sivan Dachinger, who hosts music, live shows and karaoke nights.
As opposed to other pick-up bars in Tel Aviv such as the "Dada" or the "Abraksas" the Rif Raf is considered to be, essentially, a non-pickup place with a strong asexual motive. Main genre of population are art students and others semi-cultural figures.
Further reading
*
* [http://food.walla.co.il/?w=/909/798420 Walla!Food] (from Haaretz)
Honduo (虹é?“) or Honduo Hsien Tsung (虹é?“仙宗) belongs to the Energy Implantation tradition (æ ½æŽ¥æ³•é–€) of the Chinese Taoist psychophysical cultivation system (é?“家性命雙修). The Energy Implantation tradition is the less known of various Taoist cultivation schools because of the way in which it has been passed down from generation to generation.
The practice itself is based on daily meditation and exercise, one-on-one mentoring and group practice among disciples. Its aims include Total Health, Spiritual Advancement and Afterlife Readiness. Honduo claims not to be affiliated to any of the mainstream religions, but is most akin to the philosophy of .
The cultivation process emphasises Qi (Vital Ether) circulation, fostering of Primordial Qi and reversion to the Pure Yang Body, among other things, and health benefits come as a byproduct of this process (unlike ). A distinctive feature of this process is the transmission of the Master's energy (known as the Protonumen Energy 元神能�) directly into the disciple's body. This, therefore, involves "External Enabling Force" (他力) and has put Honduo at the centre of a centuries-old debate within the Taoist community regarding total self-reliance versus partial reliance on this external expedient.
The current grandmaster of Honduo is Taiwan-based Mr Wu Ming-ta (�明�), a controversial figure in the religious circles and among various human energy cultivation schools. Wu and his followers claim to have the power to detect and locate, unaided, specific zones in human brain that correspond to permanent or fleeting states and activities, both physical and mental, and to decipher the empirical justifications of many religious tenets, particularly those of Buddhism and Taoism. These claims have not been been corroborated by systematic scientific studies or accepted by mainstream religious denominations, although Wu claims that his findings are in support of advances in neuroscience.
External Link
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The practice itself is based on daily meditation and exercise, one-on-one mentoring and group practice among disciples. Its aims include Total Health, Spiritual Advancement and Afterlife Readiness. Honduo claims not to be affiliated to any of the mainstream religions, but is most akin to the philosophy of .
The cultivation process emphasises Qi (Vital Ether) circulation, fostering of Primordial Qi and reversion to the Pure Yang Body, among other things, and health benefits come as a byproduct of this process (unlike ). A distinctive feature of this process is the transmission of the Master's energy (known as the Protonumen Energy 元神能�) directly into the disciple's body. This, therefore, involves "External Enabling Force" (他力) and has put Honduo at the centre of a centuries-old debate within the Taoist community regarding total self-reliance versus partial reliance on this external expedient.
The current grandmaster of Honduo is Taiwan-based Mr Wu Ming-ta (�明�), a controversial figure in the religious circles and among various human energy cultivation schools. Wu and his followers claim to have the power to detect and locate, unaided, specific zones in human brain that correspond to permanent or fleeting states and activities, both physical and mental, and to decipher the empirical justifications of many religious tenets, particularly those of Buddhism and Taoism. These claims have not been been corroborated by systematic scientific studies or accepted by mainstream religious denominations, although Wu claims that his findings are in support of advances in neuroscience.
External Link
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Ned Grossberg is the name of a recurring villain on the Max Headroom TV series. Grossberg was played by Charles Rocket.
In the UK telefilm "Max Headroom: 20 Minutes Into the Future" upon which the American series was based, the character was called Grosman and was played by Nickolas Grace. Rocket portrayed Grossberg as an American yuppie with a characteristic facial (and neck-stretching) twitch.
In the pilot episode, Grossberg is the chairman of Network 23, a major city television station with the highest rated investigative news show in town, hosted by Edison Carter. In the Max Headroom world, real-time ratings equal advertising dollars, and advertisements have replaced stocks as the measure of corporate worth.
Grossberg, with his secret prodigy Bryce Lynch, develop a rapid-speed advertising delivery medium known as Blipverts, which condenses a full advertisement into a few seconds. When Carter discovers that Blipverts are killing people, Grossberg orders Lynch to prevent Carter from getting out of the building. Knocked unconscious, Carter's memories are extracted into a computer by Lynch in order to determine whether Carter uncovered Grossberg's knowledge of the danger of Blipverts. The resulting computer file of the memory-extraction process becomes Max Headroom, making Grossberg directly responsible for the creation of the character.
In the end, Grossberg is publicly exposed as responsible for the Blipverts scandal, and is removed as chairman of Network 23.
A few episodes later, in Grossberg's Return Grossberg reappears as a board member of Network 66. Again, he invents a dubious advertising medium and convinces the chairman of the network to adopt it. When the advertising method is shown to be a complete fraud, the resulting public reaction against the network leads to the chairman being removed, and Grossberg manages to resume the chairmanship.
Grossberg, Ned
In the UK telefilm "Max Headroom: 20 Minutes Into the Future" upon which the American series was based, the character was called Grosman and was played by Nickolas Grace. Rocket portrayed Grossberg as an American yuppie with a characteristic facial (and neck-stretching) twitch.
In the pilot episode, Grossberg is the chairman of Network 23, a major city television station with the highest rated investigative news show in town, hosted by Edison Carter. In the Max Headroom world, real-time ratings equal advertising dollars, and advertisements have replaced stocks as the measure of corporate worth.
Grossberg, with his secret prodigy Bryce Lynch, develop a rapid-speed advertising delivery medium known as Blipverts, which condenses a full advertisement into a few seconds. When Carter discovers that Blipverts are killing people, Grossberg orders Lynch to prevent Carter from getting out of the building. Knocked unconscious, Carter's memories are extracted into a computer by Lynch in order to determine whether Carter uncovered Grossberg's knowledge of the danger of Blipverts. The resulting computer file of the memory-extraction process becomes Max Headroom, making Grossberg directly responsible for the creation of the character.
In the end, Grossberg is publicly exposed as responsible for the Blipverts scandal, and is removed as chairman of Network 23.
A few episodes later, in Grossberg's Return Grossberg reappears as a board member of Network 66. Again, he invents a dubious advertising medium and convinces the chairman of the network to adopt it. When the advertising method is shown to be a complete fraud, the resulting public reaction against the network leads to the chairman being removed, and Grossberg manages to resume the chairmanship.
Grossberg, Ned