Avatars

[Obsidian]

So, quick question. Everyone has their little avatars which, for some people, are just cool or crude pictures designed to gain laughs.

For others they obviously hold some meaning and relevance. Anyone feel like elaborating on the subtleties and complexities of their pictures? =)

Also I've noticed some members (Art in particular) have a little .gif above their avatar. Art's is like... A thick beam striking one ball then a trickle flowing back the way it came.

Any deeper meaning to that? =)

[LordArt]

My avatar is my sygil. Or a very stylized version of it more accurately. You can see a less stylized version behind the Omnimancy logo on the front page (and elsewhere, but it's easier to see there because it's bigger).

A triangle in a circle is classically representative of the "third eye". Which represents knowledge or mystical knowledge/wisdom. My sygil is a slight derivation of that which has the triangle "lines" be curved inward to the center. This aspect means "Knowledge gained by Curiosity". The curved lines of the "triangle" are actually sections of larger circles that are bounded by the original circle.

When I first got into magic, it was traditional to choose a magical name for oneself. I wanted one that would stick with me no matter how far I got. This sygil came to me in an exhausted stupor when I was first visiting my then fiance about 14 years ago. (19 hours straight driving to Miami from New Jersey will do that to you). Like many things that came to me back then, I had no idea what it meant. I asked the guy that I was "learning from" what it meant. I liked the definition and kept it. (I say "learning from" because he didn't teach me anything, he would answer questions...sometimes).


As far as my rank logo (the gif). That was just mostly cool. And you have it backwards. It's a ball putting out a little bit of power and being absorbed by the other ball. Then it triggers a massive blast from the "other" ball back to the first one...The cycle continues. I thought it was emblematic of Omni. Subtle effects or massive overkill. The little effect growing to the larger. The small idea passed around becoming something FAR larger than it originally was. Technique and raw power. That kind of thing.

[Obsidian]

Wow, there's a lot more behind yours than I thought. I expected a back-story but I'm impressed.

I've never actually noticed the subtelties of your particular avatar, Art. Until you mentioned I hadn't realised the lines curve in very slightly and for some reason my mind had chosen to ignore the 'triangle inna circle' aspect of it.

I like the depth and meaning behind it. It's interesting that it came to you during exhaustion too. Did you look into where it 'came' from?

I totally had the .gif backwards too =P Nice symbolism there.

[LordArt]

I've never actually noticed the subtelties of your particular avatar, Art. Until you mentioned I hadn't realised the lines curve in very slightly and for some reason my mind had chosen to ignore the 'triangle inna circle' aspect of it.

Well, the swords don't curve, that might be an optical illusion, but I did that logo in a 3D application a LONG time ago, so it was easier then to keep it straight. The "glow" effect in the center might give an illusion of the curves but not an impressive one. If you look closely, it says "Lord Arthur" along the top edge in norse runes (Yes, I know, I shouldn't spell out the TH if I was doing it phonetically and use Thurisaz instead, but as I said, I did this a LONG time ago). I really should do a modern version of it but finding the time is hard.

I like the depth and meaning behind it. It's interesting that it came to you during exhaustion too. Did you look into where it 'came' from?

Well, the below is how it came to me (I used this as a backround pic for a long while on an old profile page of myself, hence why the contrast is low and more "washed out")



Yes, it came to me in "marble" with a faceted red stone in the center. As far as "where it came from", it was from my inner of course. Back then I couldn't talk to him like I can now and especially then, it's easier to communicate when I'm more "relaxed" and not paying as much attention to this reality. Some people take drugs like peyote to have revalations....I drive 19 hours straight to a girlfriend's place in an exhausted stupor. Same thing.

Ironically (or not), the sygil IS what I'm known by, so I think it's something I've used before.

[Obsidian]

It came to you in marble *chuckles* With a faceted gem. Good deal =)

I see what you mean by the exhaustion. Helps slow down your conscious mind so your inner can get two words in edge-wise. It's pretty cool that you received such a detailed image of what to use from your inner, such a definite and 'real' thing instead of allusions and possibilities.

Ya know, I didn't even realise they were swords until you said it just there. I think the crossing handle's is what helped trick my eye into seeing a curve. That and, as you said, the red spot in the middle. It really draws the eye in.

How do you be know by a symbol/sygil, out of curiosity? Is it anything like graffiti tags?

Or maybe how Prince changed his name to that weird, unpronouncable symbol? *grins*

I can understand how a sygil can be used as like, a name or call-sign, it's just a little hard for me to get my head around since stuff like this is so open to perceptual bias and personal interpretation.

[LordArt]

How do you be know[n] by a symbol/sygil, out of curiosity? Is it anything like graffiti tags?

Or maybe how Prince changed his name to that weird, unpronouncable symbol? *grins*

Honestly, it's more like the Prince thing. It's been how I've been addressed on the astral a few times. Again, I'll agree it's based on my own symbolism, but I can sight two examples that happen somewhat often. First example is during a conversation, if they know me by the sygil, I will get their "voice in my head" via astral comms, and when they say my name I just get a flash picture of my sygil then right back to normal audio language. A second example is when I get letters. Again if they know me by the Sygil, it will be a bunch of runes or hyroglyphs or whereever their background is with my sygil in the middle of all of it on the "paper" where appropriate. Almost like when some is speaking another language that you can't understand, but in the middle of a sentence they say your name and continue in the foreign language. You know they are talking about you, but nothing else. I get my inner to translate such documents for me.

I say if they know me by that name because some know me by Arthur, some by that sygil, and some by other names I won't get into here.