History of the Caucus Mountains

The Ghost of Freedom: A History of the Caucasus by Charles King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Caucus mountain range straddle the borders of Europe, Turkey, Russia and Iran. It is home to a multitude of different people and just as many governments. The residents of the Caucus Mountain range follow a variety of different religions , Orthodox Christianity, Shia Islam, Suno Islam and even nomadic Buddhists. Before the Russian take over the Caucus people were very tribal with power residing in the hands of local chieftains. Through the history of the Caucus three major empires have vied for control, the Persian Empire, Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire. Historically no Empire has been able to completely control the Caucus as the local warlord, whom power relied often times shifted alliances based on self interest and putting one empire against the other. The reverse was also true the major empires would pit the various warlords against each other. Classic divide and conquer which is easy to do as the various ethnic groups did not always like each other .

The book traces military history and documents how Russia was able to beat out the two other empires and take control over the Caucus. There were many conflicts with the local population. The most noted would be with the Daghestani people. The Circassian would put up fierce resistance to Russian rule. Often times using guerrila tactics the Russians found themselves taking on heavy casualties. Military leaders like Ermelov would mow down entire villages. Other leaders would deport major sections of the population . The communist take over would complicate things. Ur eventually Russia took over,

To the Russians the Caucus was at times a savage place but going their could be liberating . Often times Rusdia sent their undesirables like the Cossacks out there as colonists. Some times other nationalities would defect from forced conscription in the Russian Army and end up siding with the highlanders. Sometimes being a slave to a high lander was the same as being a serf to a noble or a forced conscripts in the military.

With Gorbachev reforms countries like Armenia,Azerbaijan and a Georgia broke away from the Soviet Union . This did not lead to peace but rather it lead to infighting among various ethnic groups. Chechenya tried to violently break away from Russian rule twice,their tactics involved invoking religion as a motivating factor. They used violent terror tactics to achieve their means .

Great over all history of the region. Of course, I will tell to go read the book if you want more information.

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Herbology 101

The Complete Medicinal Herbal: A Practical Guide to the Healing Properties of Herbs, with More Than 250 Remedies for Common Ailments by Penelope Ody
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There are many books out there on herbalism . This one is another one and maybe like all the others yet with some differences . This one is great for the coffee table, it is big, hardcover and looks nice. Most books on herbology will give you a dictionary listing of the herbs and what they are good for. The second half of most books has the dictionary symptom of ailments and what herbs can be used to treat them. This book has more.

The first part of the book talks about different philosophies around herbs. The author discusses Chinese medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, Greek medicine , European medicine going up until today. This tome will teach the student how to prepare teas, oil infusions and tinctures. There is a section on how to grow and harvest your herbs as well.

When describing the herbs you get a full page based on that herb. There is a picture of the herb and all the parts that are used. There is also a subsection on the page dealing applications . The various ailment that plague us are listed in chart form. So you get the ailment, what herb you should use and how the herb should be prepared. It is easy to understand .


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The Yemenites of Jerusalem: Tale

Seeds of the Pomegranate by Dvora Waysman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The first book “ Pomegranate Pendent “ was release over twenty years ago. I read it on my honeymoon in Israel. Seeing the Yemenite gargush drew me to the book magnetically. This book is a great read for Young Adults, especially if their knowledge of Yemenite Judaism is scant. One criticism of this book is that it should have included more Yemenite culture and customs. I love that stuff and there are others like me. The book has no plot line so to speak.

The first book left off with the conclusion of Israel’s war for Independence. The family had to leave behind their old city Jerusalem home and they had to abandon their Yemenite Jewelry shop called “ The Pomegranate Pendent”. The pendant is also given to the brides as a sort of tradition so they will be fruitful and multiply.

The book starts off with the family in 1956 celebrating a ten year yertheit for Mazal the family patriarch. Sitting graveside they tell stories about her . Next comes the six day war and the narrators husband goes off to war. The story gives some insight as to how war effected families. Kobi comes back home depressed for several weeks . It is at a family gathering that Kobi suggests that they get back their old city home and reopen the Pomegranate Pendent. Which they do. It does good business of course.

The 73 war comes about. More interruptions from war. The family lives through these tragedies Along with the rest of the nation. As Yemenite in Israel they must deal with assimilation and losing their Yemenite ways. This happens when Dikla falls for an Ethiopian Jew. The narrators son URI decides to go to America and start a life there. It causes problems. But they get through these problems as they have for thousands of years.

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Build Yourself Up!

Building Your Self-Image by Zelig Pliskin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Why are some people super successful while others are even afraid to try? There could be a lot of reasons for this. Modern psychology has determined that self image or how we see ourselves has a direct impact in every area of life. People with a positive self image tend to be more successful. After all if you have a positive self image you. Tend to believe in yourself more and those that believe in themselves are not afraid to go for it when pursuing their goals. They are not afraid to take a risk. What if you don’t have a positive self image. The answer of course is to build one.

Rabbi Pliskin who I had the honor of meeting in Jerusalem many years ago on the Discovery Program through Aish Hatorah has crafted a brilliant book to help you build your self image. Techniques and saying are culled from the deep flowing sources in Judaism, along with modern psychology and neurolingusitic programming.

What can you do to build your self image? Well for one you can do acts of kindness. This activity will be stored in your brain and you will think of yourself as a kind person. This raises your self image. One can also master themselves by overcoming negative behaviors and learning to work with their emotions. Over come these obstacle and you already have the building block of a positive self image. An anchor is an concept from neurolingusitc programming. An anchor is an activity that provokes a certain emotion that can be positive or negative. Use the positive anchor to lift your spirits so you can excel. Rabbi Pliskin’s method employs affirmations and a lot of rethinking of how we view things. Difficult or adverse challenges help us grow and bring out the best of us. Remember once you overcome these obstacles you have over come another challenge and this is stored in your brain and it builds your self image. Even if you only reach your personal best once just remember that you did do it and that you can do it. This is added to your brain and it builds your self image.

This book could come real handy if you follow the advice within the pages. You definitely can boost your self image and when you feel better about yourself then you accomplish more. sometimes though i think you need to achieve something in order for your self image to properly grow.

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