Benjamin Ma (aka Bhishma and Mr. Ma), gym teacher and combat instructor at the Paxington Institute before the end of the Fifth Celestial Age. May be the same Immortal warrior from the Sanskrit epic, The Mahabharata, who took an unshakable vow of celibacy and was thereby gifted by cosmic forces with the power to choose the time of his death. Reputedly killed in the climatic battle of The Mahabharata, however, similar warriors and yogis appear later in history, and this famous death may have been faked (certainly he did nothing to dissuade the useful rumor). The prophecy of his death triggering the end of things, of course, was proved true-foreshadowed when Fiona (ironically sent with permission slip in hand by Death incarnate) drew his blood that fateful day. Gods of the First and Twenty-first Century, Volume 11, The Post Family Mythology. Zypheron Press Ltd., Eighth Edition.
53
The magic (or wishing) well is common in fairy tales, often depicted as granting three wishes, dispensing healing waters, or giving (all-too-often unheeded) advice to young heroes. The earliest stories of these wells, however, contain sinister forces: trolls or imprisoned spirits eager to pull in unsuspecting children. Many of the tales relate that these wells were conduits to hell or the Fairy Lands. Coins were dropped into their depths in the hopes of appeasing the evil within. Gods of the First and Twenty-first Century, Volume 5, Core Myths (Part 2). Zypheron Press Ltd., Eighth Edition.
54
Sulfur (aka brimstone) is often cited in relationship to evil within the Bible, and it is implied that Hell smells of brimstone (hence “fire and brimstone” sermons). In fact, sulfur is odorless. Its characteristic smell comes from hydrogen sulfide (the odor of untreated sewage, and flatulence [along with sulfur-containing mercaptans]) or sulfur dioxide (from burnt matches). Early Chinese doctors used sulfur for medicinal purposes (WARNING: See toxicity tables in Appendix), and gunpowder was likely discovered by Taoist monk-alchemists searching for the elixir of immortality. The fifteenth-century Swiss alchemist Paracelsus believed sulfur embodied the soul (along with the emotions and desires). Primer of Alchemical Elements: Truth and Myth, Dr. Kensington Park, Paxington Press LLC.
55
“Bright Ones.” A seventeenth-century colloquialism for “fairies.”-Editor.
56
Translation from Spanish, “excrement-eating dog.”-Editor.
57
Buildings in a four-block radius were declared structurally unsound and ordered demolished by the newly elected Costa Esmeralda Parliament. Miraculously, the church in the adjacent courtyard was unscathed, save a single shot-out window (and this even miraculous in that witness and photographic evidence corroborate that for three days after, sunlight passing through the open frame was colored as if the window were intact). Given these miracles-and, of course, the fact that this church was later the location where the Divine reentered the mortal world (see Volume 11, The Post Family Mythology)-the church was rechristened Bastion of the Herald of Light and selected by the New Catholic Church of the Sixth Celestial Age as the site to rebuild the Vatican. Gods of the First and Twenty-first Century, Volume 2, Divine Inspirations. Zypheron Press Ltd., Eighth Edition.
58
Much of the Paxington Institute in San Francisco was designed by Augustus Pugin (1812–1852). Pugin was an advocate for Gothic architecture (and attacked “Pagan” classical architecture). He is widely known for his work on the British Houses of Parliament and the clock tower Big Ben. After being recruited by the Paxington Architectural Trust, his views on classical design softened, and he blended Gothic and classical elements in what is now known as Mytho-Gothic. In his journal, he wrote, “My previous works are as pale imitations compared to Paxington. My dreams have taken on a life of their own.” Pugin never saw his work finished, as he died after a mental collapse in 1851. Your Guide to the Paxington Institute (Freshman Edition). Paxington Institute Press LLC, San Francisco.
59
Marchantiophyta is a division of plants commonly known as “liverworts” which are typically small and low to the ground with flattened leaves. Monoicious is a term indicating both male and female reproductive structures are located on different branches of the same plant. Therefore this insult makes reference to a person’s small size and relatively primitive and isolated sexual characteristics. -Editor.
60
A Klein sphere is a contradiction in terms. In mathematics, a Klein bottle has a single continuous surface in a tube or bottle shape; i.e., there are neither distinct inner or outer surfaces (cf. the Mobius strip). A sphere, however, has distinct inner and outer surfaces. Modern mathematicians continue to puzzle over if this reference is a misnomer or if Infernals have a hitherto unknown understanding of topology. An Introduction to the Mathematics of Myth, Paxington Press LLC, San Francisco.
