medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Hmmm. Thanks, Risa. This brings to mind the quippu of Peru used by
the pre-conquest inhabitants (Incas). The quippu were bundles of
knotted cords, used to keep records. They are not alphabetic nor
syllabic in the arrangement of the knots, just mnemonic. Isn't it
interesting that different peoples at different times should strike on
the same device for mnemonics? yrs, tom ault
On Mon, 27 Sep 2004 19:03:21 +0200
Rochelle Altman <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and
>culture
>
>Yes, Tom, they are called "worry beads."
>Worry beads (Greek komboloi) are used throughout
>Greece. They are "bracelet" length and supposed
>to be a stress relief device. You can certainly see them
>twirl rather rapidly if a conversation is getting
>heated.
>
>Worry beads can be very simple or quite expensive;
>I've seen pearl and garnet worry beads as well as
>amber or wood versions. Jewelry shops carry them,
>as do street stall vendors. There is even a komboloi
>museum in Nauplion. Actually, they are found
>in use throughout what was the Ottoman Empire...
>which, of course, includes Islamic countries.
>
>Strings of beads as mnemonic aids are ancient.
>Finding the origins of stress-relief beads or a
>possible connection with Islamic prayer beads
>may be a chicken and egg problem.
>
>regards,
>
>risa
>
>
>
>
>
>> Having lived in Eastern Europe & India and frequented many tea
>>stalls
>> and coffee houses, I can make the observation that some of the beads
>> in question may not be religious. Many men had (have) a loop of
>>beads
>> with a tail, which they usually twirl around their thumb but also do
>> other fascinating movements while in conversation. They appear to
>>be
>> an almost required social hand prop in some places. They were
>>(are?)
>> called "worry beads" and have no religious connotations. At least
>> that is what I was told when I was there.
>> yrs, tom ault
>>
>> On Mon, 27 Sep 2004 08:49:26 -0500
>> Christopher Crockett <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>> >medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and
>> >culture
>> >
>> >From: Chris Laning <[log in to unmask]>
>> >> Can anyone refer me to someone who would know about the history
>>of
>> >Islamic prayer beads?
>> >> Until recently the best documentation I could find was a couple
>>of
>> >
>> >> 16th-century Safavid Persian paintings showing people with what
>>are
>> >clearly prayer beads. _Beads of Faith_ does have a manuscript
>> >illustration which it says is a "12th century Mogul painting"
>>showing
>> >an Islamic "saint" in India with his beads, but apparently the
>> >manuscript is in private hands (?) which means I have no way to
>>check
>> >the date.
>> >
>> >> Suggestions?
>> >
>> >knowing nothing whatever about the subject, i am free to speculate
>> >that the
>> >chances of the Islamic practice *not* being influenced by the much
>> >more
>> >ancient Hindu and Budhist traditions are pretty slim.
>> >
>> >c
>> >
>> >**********************************************************************
>> >To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR
>>NAME
>> >to: [log in to unmask]
>> >To send a message to the list, address it to:
>> >[log in to unmask]
>> >To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion
>> >to: [log in to unmask]
>> >In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write
>> >to:
>> >[log in to unmask]
>> >For further information, visit our web site:
>> >http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html
>>
>> **********************************************************************
>> To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME
>> to: [log in to unmask]
>> To send a message to the list, address it to:
>> [log in to unmask]
>> To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion
>> to: [log in to unmask]
>> In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write
>>to:
>> [log in to unmask]
>> For further information, visit our web site:
>> http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html
>
>**********************************************************************
>To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME
>to: [log in to unmask]
>To send a message to the list, address it to:
>[log in to unmask]
>To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion
>to: [log in to unmask]
>In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write
>to:
>[log in to unmask]
>For further information, visit our web site:
>http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html
**********************************************************************
To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME
to: [log in to unmask]
To send a message to the list, address it to:
[log in to unmask]
To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion
to: [log in to unmask]
In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to:
[log in to unmask]
For further information, visit our web site:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/medieval-religion.html
|