04 August 2017
In January, 2001 an earthquake shook the Indian state of Gujarat. Known as The Great Gujarat Earthquake of 2001, it was previously described in one of PRIMITIVE's New Arrivals: During the earthquake, many buildings were destroyed and lives lost. Those will never be reclaimed, and while the quake gave birth to many stories of resilience, recovery, and renewal, it also presented the opportunity ...
30 June 2017
The island of Bali is in Indonesia. While it can be described as an island paradise featuring extraordinary natural vistas and scenes of great beauty on both a grand and intimate scale, it is also home to one of the most complex and engaging cultures in the world. While the rest of Indonesia is Islamic, Bali is Hindu. However, Hinduism as practiced on Bali is endemic to the island alone. It is ...
24 March 2017
Many of humankind’s earliest civilizations began on the banks of rivers, but it wasn't long before people learned to build dams to stem the threat of floods and droughts. The oldest known dam is located in Jordan and dates back to 3000 BCE. It’s evidence of humankind’s ability to harness and control the flow of rivers, which allowed villages to become cities; and ultimat...
21 October 2016
What happens when we draw our final breath? Nobody really knows, except perhaps the dead. Death has fascinated the living for thousands of years. Burials, one of humankind’s earliest rituals, provide evidence of reverence for the dead and whatever lay beyond. Some cultures believe in heaven and hell. Others believe in reincarnation. Whatever any particular culture believes abo...
17 June 2016
One of the most delicate subjects to talk about is faith – yet everywhere we go, it is present. It might even be said faith is a universal concept, even if how it is applied may differ. One person has faith in one religion, one person another religion; one person believes in one particular god, another believes something altogether different. Teachings may differ, but the idea of fai...
23 January 2015
In 1865, Tibet was closed to foreigners. Authorities feared foreign exposure would destroy the country’s culture and religion; and worse that foreigners wanted to colonize the country. It’s probably true. The British were encroaching from India to the South; China was encroaching from the East; and Russia was expanding from the North. Tibet was a country under siege. It appeare...
14 November 2014
The irony is the Greek texts had undergone several revisions in recent times and were close to the original Russian version Nikon wanted to reform. Ignorant of this knowledge, Nikon, backed by the Tsar, oppressed and persecuted the Old Believers who protested and refused to change. This was a terribly violent time in Russian history. Many people were exiled, flogged, starved or burned at t...