Miracle

Remarkable and incomprehensible phenomena have been observed throughout human history – phenomena which, without any logical explanation, can only be described as miracles. Surprisingly, a majority of the human population believes in the concept of miracles, but rarely are these occurrences discussed openly in public forums. Yet this type of mysticism is embedded into various cultures throughout the world, in all stages of human history. Buddhism is a great example, a faith that is abundant with scriptures of human beings with superpowers, the power of human consciousness, distant healing, etc. Even today, when it comes to the power of human consciousness and parapsychological manifestations like distant health or telepathy, there is substantial evidence confirming that at least some of these phenomena are, without a doubt, real. Just because we cannot develop a sound scientific theory to explain these types of occurrences does not mean they do not exist.

Below are 5 examples of “miracles” that have been observed in the field of medicine.

“Miracles are not contrary to nature, but only contrary to what we know about nature.” – Saint Augustine

In 1983, physician Rex Gardner published a study in the British Medical Journal after he studied a number of miraculous healing events. (source) Here are a select few.

Case #1

In 1977, an eleven month old baby boy with signs of a lung disease that is almost always fatal was taken to a healing service by a Pentecostal pastor. Keep in mind that this approach was taken after the disease was treated without success. A few days later he was remarkably better and a few years later he was completely normal.

Case #2

In 1975, a student physician was suddenly diagnosed with what is called Water-house Friderichsen syndrome. It’s a fatal disease, a bacterial blood infection that leads to massive internal bleeding. In this particular hospital there was a zero percent success rate of healing for anyone suffering from it. In the same evening, four separate groups actively sent healing intention to the patient and there then occurred a drastic improvement in her condition. When she had been admitted to the hospital, her chest X-rays showed extensive left-side pneumonia and a completely collapsed middle lobe of the lung. She also had developed intraocular bleeding, which left her one hundred percent blind in one eye. Only forty-eight hours later, the X-ray showed a perfectly clear chest, and she had regained full vision. This is impossible, according to modern day physicians.

Case #3

Case number three is about a woman who took a hard fall on a cement floor. She was taken to a hospital and the X-ray showed a compound fracture of the pelvis. This is a serious injury, one that takes a very long time to heal and even longer to rehabilitate. This woman was taken home where she was then surround by others praying for her and laying their hands on her. She should have been bedridden, unable to move for weeks, but after only two days she had fully recovered.

Case #4

In 1970, the captain of the Girl’s Brigade at Enon Baptist Church, Monkwearmouth, had a deterioration in a large varicose ulcer of the leg which had been troubling her for many years. Every morning her bandage was soaked with pus, and her doctor told her that her ulcer would probably not heal, and even if it did it would require skin grafting.

What happened here, again, was healing intention. She was visited by a number of people who laid hands on the area and prayed. Healing became “immediately complete.” By the next morning, virtually the whole ulcer had dried up and healed over with healthy skin. One week later it was completely healed.

Case #5

In 1963, a man by the name of Robin Talbot of the Overseas Missionary Fellowship, along with his wife, was the first Christian ever to stay in the village of Still Water. It was in the Mong tribal area of North Thailand. While they were there, a woman by the name of Mrs. Ling, who was approximately 50 years old at the time, became very ill. According to the villagers and the missionaries, she passed away soon after. Twenty minutes after her death she sat up and told a tale of an “afterlife” experience. That being said, there is absolutely no hard proof that she had actually died.

In modern day scientific realms, this is considered to be a Near Death Experience (NDE), something that has been documented, verified, and confirmed by various neuroscientists (although unexplainable). You can read more about that, and watch a video of Dr. Bruce Greyson speaking at a conference that was held by the United Nations here and here. He is considered to be one of the “fathers” of near death studies. He is Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Science at the University of Virginia

GEOLOGICAL WONDERS

The Eye of the Sahara, Mauritania

Formally known as the Richat Structure, the Eye of the Sahara is a much more appropriate name. This mysterious blue eye has puzzled scientist since the first space flights, when astronauts noticed it looking back at them. Space shuttles use the 50 km-wide feature as a landmark even today, it is so clear in the middle of the barren Sahara desert. Researchers now believe it is a “symmetrical uplift”, essentially an area that rose up as hard quartz while softer rock and sand was eroded from it.

Sailing Stones, Death Valley, USA

This mysterious and ghostly phenomenon occurs at Racetrack Playa, Death Valley which is a fitting location! The stones travel long distances without any human or animal help! It seems as if they just lift themselves up and scoot along, making a trail or groove in the rock surface as they travel. Scientists’ best guess as to why this happens at present is that wind at the level of the stones causes them almost to hydroplane. Sometimes they turn left or right, and other times it looks like two stones are racing each other. They only move every three or four years and the grooves take some time to build up. Definitely a wonder of the world!

The Blue Grotto, Italy

The Blue Grotto in Capri is a gorgeous cave with a brilliant blue color to it due to two separate sources of light. One is tiny, the opening you can see in this picture which allows small rowboats in. The other opening is much larger and beneath the first, sending in rays of light into the cave from below. Of course, it is more difficult for this second hole to allow light through as it is underwater, but its size makes the difference.

Crystal Cave of Giants, Mexico

Standing in 90 degree heat on huge logs of crystals, one might indeed be in a giants’ showroom in Chihuahua, Mexico. Dwarfing humans in size, these are the largest crystals of selenite ever found. The heat inside comes from magma under the floor of the cave, and it was magma-heated water that once filled the whole space. As a result, it became rich in minerals like gypsum, causing the crystal logs to form. Because of the heat and humidity, scientists can’t spend more than 10 minutes at a time in the cave without suffering ill effects, so it is no wonder tourists won’t have the opportunity to visit in the near future.

Chocolate Hills, The Philippines

The Chocolate Hills in the Philippines are named for their resemblance to Hershey kisses during the dry season when the grass is brown. With estimates of up to 1,776 of these amazing mounds – actually called haycock hills – they make a spectacular landscape. When visiting, you are standing on millions of years’ worth marine limestone, which contains fossils, old coral and mollusks! They were created by erosion from above and below by water after they had been lifted up from sea level.

Wave Rock, Australia

This incredible rock is found in Hayden, Australia. It looks like the earth sculpted a breaking wave and put it down on the land – which is almost exactly what happened! The rock, composed of granite, formed by a process of erosion while still underneath the earth 60 million years ago! As the earth exposed more of the area, it finally came into view to amaze and delight us all.

Fantasy Cave, Bermuda

Many know of Crystal Cave in Bermuda but few know of her sister cave, Fantasy. As beautiful as her sibling, she is also deeper. There are 88 steps down into her cavern. The authorities had to close the cave for a long time in the 1940s, but it was reopened with all new lighting and pathways in 2001.

Bungle Bungles, Australia

Bungle Bungles (a great name!) are found in the the Purnululu National Park in Western Australia, also a World Heritage Site. They are beehive shaped mounds with tiger striping caused by bacteria growing on the gray stripes and iron manganese on the red. They’re an incredible sight, looking like the condominiums of giant bees as big as helicopters!

Moeraki Boulders, New Zealand

The Moeraki Boulders are amazing boulders found on the New Zealand coast. They are highly spherical in almost all cases and were exposed due to erosion and winds. As with many geological wonders, you would be excused for thinking that giants have been there, playing marbles as they crash among the waves.

Pamukkale, Turkey

These stunning terraces of water are found in Pamukkale Turkey and were shaped from a substance called travertine, which forms from the build-up of sediments of calcium carbonate deposited in water from hot springs. Then the calcium dioxide degasses and you are left with these beautiful terraces, with warm water flowing over them.

wonderful flowers

“Flowers… are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world.”
Flower is the easiest way to show your feelings and emotions. When we see beautiful flower, we feel happy. They are a simple and sincere way to lift our spirits. The most beautiful flowers can bring a smile to someone faces who has been sick or having a rough day. Below are some of the most beautiful flowers in the world. It was hard narrowing down the list to 10 but it had to be done. Because they are really incredible thing in our life and of course we collected only the best. You may also enjoy this strange flowers list…

Cherry Blossom

Nothing is more beautiful than the arrival of Spring in Japan when the cherry blossoms trees are in full bloom. The unofficial flowers of Japan, the spectacular display of blossoms that arrive in the spring are celebrated by festivals both in Japan and the U.S. The most popular colors are white and pink. They are beautiful while on the trees and remain a stunning sight even after carpeting the ground.

Dahlia

The dahlia is a genus native to Central America, Colombia and Mexico and they are characterized as bushy, tuberous and perennial plants. The plant was named after the botanist Anders Dahl. There are roughly 30 species and at least 20,000 cultivars.

Bleeding Heart

The flower, especially in the bud form, of the Lamprocapnos, a flowering plant of the poppy family, oddly resembles the conventional shape of the heart with e droplet beneath. That is why, it has been given the name, a bleeding heart. The outer petals are bright fuchsia in colour. As the flower blooms further and the outer petals open up, the inner, white parts, often called the ‘lady in a bath’ become more visible. This plant is found in Siberia, northern China, Korea and Japan.

Canna

From the genus Rosa, Roses are one of the most romantic and wonderfully scented of flowers. The giving of roses is steeped in tradition and cultural meaning, from the yellow rose of friendship to the deep red rose of true love. The rose is a woody perennial shrub whose varieties’ stems are often thorned. Most species are found in Asia but it is generally well distributed all over the world. Roses are considered one of the most beautiful ornamental plants to decorate any garden.
Duck Orchid

Caleana is commonly referred to as the Duck Orchid. This is because, the labellum looks just like a flying duck with its wings raised high. The lip, in particular, looks clearly like the beak of a duck. The flower is reddish brown in colour, and in rare cases, it is greenish with dark spots, and a single leaf appears near the base of the stalk. This small terrestrial orchid is found in the Australia, from Queensland to South Australia, and even Tasmania.

 Snapdragon and its Skull

The Antirrhinum, found in the rocky areas Europe, America and North Africa, has an interesting flower called the dragon flower or snapdragon. The beautiful flower petals give the impression of the face of a dragon, which, when squeezed, will open and close like the mouth. But, once the petals wither and fall off, only the seed pod is left behind, presenting quite a macabre look, because the seed pod looks like a skull. Ancient cultures believed snapdragons to have supernatural powers.
Dove Orchid/Holy Ghost Orchid

Peristeria is an orchid that is commonly found to grow across much of South America, along with Panama, Trinidad and Costa Rica. One look inside the pure white flower reveals a structure hidden inside it, which looks like dove. In fact, sitting cosy in the centre within the petals is an entire dove, complete with raised wings with tiny pink dots, and a tiny yellow beak. This structure is the reason behind its name. It is indeed one very peaceful looking flower.

 Naked Man Orchid

The Orchis italica is often referred to as the Italian orchid, owing to its Mediterranean region where it generally grows in large numbers. But, more commonly, it is known as the naked man orchid. This is because, the amazing flowers of the orchid have petals that look like naked men. The flowers are a combination of bright pink and white in colour, and they are all clustered densely. These strangely shaped flowers make the plant quite popular.

Monkey Orchid

The Dracula Simia or the Monkey Orchid is also known as the monkey-like Dracula. This is a rare species of orchids which is found to grow in the cloud forests of south-eastern parts of Ecuador and Peru. The orchid is called so because it has flowers which display an odd arrangement of column, petals and lip that strongly resembles the face of a monkey – a baboon, to be more specific. The flowers bear the fragrance of a ripe orange.

Hooker’s Lips

While many might consider it an exaggerated description, the Psychotria Elata, also called the Hooker’s Lips or Kissing Lips plant, is absolutely genuine. It exists in the tropical rainforests of Central and Southern Africa. The waxy bract, which is a modified or specialized leaf, associated with the flower, is bright red in colour, and is shaped like the luscious lips of a woman, complete with a well-defined cupid’s bow. The actual star-shaped flowers emerge from the bract’s centre.

Swaddled Babies

The Angloua Uniflora is a beautiful orchid which is commonly known by the name, Swaddled Babies. The plant grows in the Columbian Andes. The most stunning feature of the plant is its flowers which are large, creamy-white and waxy. Their structure is quite complex, and at a certain stage of opening, they start to look like a baby wrapped in swaddling cloth. Each flower blooms from a single stem from the base of the pseudobulbs.

There are many more such plants with oddly shaped. Some look like Dancing Girls, while others look like Laughing Bumble Bees. Some flowers bear resemblance to smiling (and probably loopy) Happy Aliens, while another may look freakishly like the Darth Vader. All in all, Mother Nature has shown some remarkable creativity with her beautiful and strange flowers.

Parrot Flower

The Impatiens Psittacina is an amazing plant of the balsam family. The flowers are purple and carmine red in colour. When viewed from the sides, the flowers seemingly resemble a parrot in flight. British botanist and explorer, Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker, first noted, in a scientific description of the plant in 1901, how its bloom looks like a ‘flying cockatoo’ and from then on, the name has stuck. This rare plant is found in Thailand, Burma and parts of India.

Ballerina Orchid

These small plants are terrestrial spider orchids that grow singly or in groups in different parts across the island of Australia. The flowers are essentially cream in colour, with maroon markings, and their petals and sepals have dark trichromes. Together, the flower looks like a maiden in white tutus, holding a graceful ballet pose. The grazing of rabbits and kangaroos in the regions where they grow pose great threat to these orchids.

Beyond Titanic

Titanic is perhaps the most iconic ship in history, its tragic story known the world over.

The most celebrated ocean liner of its time even before it first sailed, Titanic was an incredible feat of engineering and ambition. Its maiden voyage ended in tragedy when it struck an iceberg and sank, killing more than 1,500 passengers and crew.

From its construction in Belfast, through its dramatic sinking to the discovery of the wreck, it is a story that continues to capture the public imagination.

More about Titanic:
Titanic was one of three 'Olympic Class' liners commissioned by the White Star Line to be built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast. Construction began on the first of these great ships, Olympic, on 16 December 1908. Work on Titanic started soon after, on 31 March 1909. These magnificent vessels were the industrial marvels of their age and Titanic was to be the biggest, fastest and most luxurious liner yet.
After just three years, Titanic was finished - a floating city, ready to set sail on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. On board was a collection of passengers comprising millionaires, silent movie stars, school teachers and emigrants, in search of a better life in the United States.
By the fifth day of its journey, Titanic was making swift progress across the Atlantic. Although Captain Edward Smith had plotted a new course upon hearing earlier reports of ice from other liners, there were many more communications that day of ice in Titanic's path. On the night of Sunday 14 April 1912, the sea was flat calm, the sky clear and moonless, and the temperature was dropping towards freezing. In such conditions, sea ice is very hard to spot.

At 11.40pm the lookout sounded the alarm and telephoned the bridge saying "Iceberg, right ahead." The warning came too late to avoid the iceberg and Titanic struck it less than 40 seconds later, tearing a series of holes along the side of the hull. Upon inspecting the damage, Titanic's chief naval architect Thomas Andrews said to Captain Smith that the ship would certainly sink. Six of the watertight compartments at the front of the ship's hull were breached, five of them flooding within the hour. Titanic was designed to stay afloat with only four compartments flooded.

Less than three hours later Titanic lay at the bottom of the Atlantic ocean, nearly four kilometres down. The sinking of Titanic claimed more than 1,500 lives. For many, the tragic fate that befell Titanic would come to mark the passing of the opulence of the Edwardian era and foreshadowed the global tragedy of World War One. The story captured the public imagination across the world, spawning countless books, films, plays, memorials, museums and exhibitions. The discovery of the wreck by oceanographer Robert Ballard on a Franco-American expedition in 1985 gave rise to a fresh wave of interest that continues to this day.


The fascination with the wreck of Titanic began not long after the ship sank to the bottom of the north Atlantic, some 676 kilometres off Mistaken Point, Newfoundland, almost four kilometres below the surface. Early plans to find and raise the wreck were hindered by a combination of technical limitations and prohibitive cost.
By the 1980s, technological advances in sonar scanning made the dream of finding the wreck a tantalising possibility. The wreck of Titanic was finally found in 1985 by a Franco-American expedition headed by oceanographer Robert Ballard.

Many subsequent expeditions followed, most famously those of James Cameron. The film director used footage gathered from eleven dives to the wreck in his 1997 blockbuster, Titanic.
BBC correspondent Mike McKimm participated in a dive to the wreck of Titanic in 2005 in order to place a memorial plaque on the bridge of the ship. It reads "In memory of all those who died on RMS Titanic. From Harland and Wolff and the people of Belfast."

Submerged in a small Russian MIR submarine with Irish diver Rory Golden and pilot Anatoly Sagalevich, Mike captured remarkable footage of the ship's bow. This included the Marconi Room from which radio messages were sent and received, the forward mast, the grand staircase and the captain's quarters.
Also filmed was the debris field between this section of the ship and the stern, which lies hundreds of yards away after Titanic snapped in half close to the surface.
The famous ship is deteriorating rapidly, overwhelmed by the relentless spread of rusticles (named by Robert Ballard on account of their icicle-like shape) which are eating the manganese, iron and sulphur out of the steel and weakening the wreck.

It is estimated that Titanic will be unrecognisable as a ship within a hundred years, eventually becoming nothing more than an iron ore deposit at the bottom of the ocean.

The iceberg that sank Titanic

Each iceberg is unique, moulded by its individual journey through the polar seas. They float low in the water due to the sheer weight of the ice, which is why the tip of an iceberg is no measure of what lies beneath.

The International Ice Patrol has now traced where the iceberg that sank Titanic originated.

Greenland breeding ground

Eighty-five percent of all icebergs found in the North Atlantic come from the ice fjords on Greenland's west coast, and the ice shelf in Ilulissat is the most likely birthplace of the Titanic iceberg.

The iceberg that sank Titanic would have started life as a snowflake 15,000 years earlier. Snow that falls at the centre of the Greenland ice sheet is at first fluffy and not particularly dense, but it compacts with depth to become a third of its original size. Tens of metres below the surface it becomes so dense it turns to solid glacial ice.

An immense iceberg

In 1909, Ilulissat was producing just one or two of these huge icebergs each year. The iceberg that sank Titanic would have been up to a mile long, displacing around a billion tonnes of seawater.

It would have taken the iceberg over a year to edge its way down the 40-mile fjord. The relentless jostling of other bergs on this journey would have battered and eroded it, reducing it to half its birth weight.

Controlled by ocean currents

By 1911 the Titanic iceberg would have been picked up on the powerful west Greenland current and dragged down the north-eastern coast of Canada. It would have been huge, the above water ice alone rivalling the Colosseum in size.

Over a thousand miles from its birthplace and around a fortnight after its collision with Titanic, the last piece of the iceberg disappeared into the Atlantic ocean.

Thomas Andrews:

Thomas Andrews was the chief naval architect at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast during the early 1900s.

He brought the idea of 'Olympic class' ocean liners to life, overseeing their planning and construction. The most famous of these was Titanic, which he joined on its maiden voyage.

His actions when the ship sank on 15 April 1912 are believed to have saved many lives, but at the cost of his own.