Elvis's Graceland and Was He Jewish And Where You See The Six Pointed Star

When I lived in the USA I was astonished and impressed by the number of museums which had relics of Elvis. you did not need to go to the place where he lived and died, Graceland, to see things related to him, cars, clothes, guitars. When I went to a stand at the World Travel Market in London, which used to be open to the public, at least on some days, then when it got busier, reduced to trade only,  I met a toruist board rep who alerted me to the idea that Elvis might have a Jewish ancestor. Elvis had a star of David, magen David in Hebrew, on the left of his mother's gravestone, and was the Sabbath goy, the non Jewish person who turns on the light, most importantly the cooer, on the Sabbath when Jews, and their employed live-in servants, are supposed to be resting. 

However, I finally found the details and debate in an article on the Who Do You Think You Are magazine, which you can subscribe to and read and buy back issues online. This article seems to be free online, perhaps as a come on - very effective. It gives details of how much time and effort can go into research and what to look for.

One of the most interesting additional facts for me was how widespread the six pointed star is.  Regonized and used by many religions in additional to Judaism, others before, after, and alongside, or far away. 

I first saw a star of David on a non-Jewish building in India. 

Where can you see the six pointed star?

1 Israel and worldwide: In blue on the flag of Israel.

2 USA Engraved on the left of the gravestone of Elvis Presley's mother. On Synagogues.

3 India On a big building in Mumbia (formerly Bombay)

4 Singapore On the front of the synagogues and on buildings built by Jews in previous centuries.

Where can you see Elvis sites?

1 Birthplace Tupelo and Elvis Museum, Tupelo, Mississippi, USA

Photo by Ron Cogswell, in Wikipedia, article on Elvis
Tupelo, Mississippi, USA. Birthplace museum.

2 Graceland, USA

3 Hollwood Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, California, USA

Elvis Presley Burial site, Graceland, USA.

https://www.facebook.com/EPNashvilleFans/posts/gladys-presleys-original-headstone-is-now-displayed-at-graceland-in-the-mediatio/1933872546675532/

Elvis's parents. On the left is his mother Grace Love, later Presley.

Hard Rock Cafe, Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, USA

Description	English: Hard Rock Cafe, Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia
Date	2 December 2013, 20:56:40
Source	Own work
Author	Michael Rivera

Useful Websites

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2015/12/elvis-enthusiasts-where-to-see-elvis.html?m=0

 Was Elvis Presley Jewish?: https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/52/2022/08/GettyImages-961946124-1788d1d.jpeg

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/top-places-elvis-presley-fans

Elvis Sites - Here are my favourites:
Memphis, Tennessee, USA
Sun studio (museum, hourly tours led by a musician, photo spots, food).
Graceland and Gravesite in Graceland.

Elvis Sites Websites
http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2013/aug/17/top-10-elvis-presley-memphis-attractions
graceland.com
http://travelblog.viator.com/11-sights-and-tours-perfect-for-the-elvis-fan/
http://www.elvis-history-blog.com/elvis-sites.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Hawaii
His pink Cadillac is in Graceland. Read about his cars and Australia connections here:
http://www.elvis.com.au/presley/elvis_presleys_1955_pink_cadillac.shtml

I just discovered a new wiki, wikitree

https://www.wikitree.com/genealogy/PRESLEY

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Hanukah delights, the lights, the donuts, latkes, stars, spinning tops and songs

 I was invited to a Hanukah dinner at a home. We researched online for shops selling kosher wine. 

The shop we found, Grapevine in Hendon, one of two branches, sold kosher wine and kosher chocolates. We stocked up on kosher wine so that we would be ready for any other event later this year or next year where the hosts or guests might want kosher wine. Grapevine has two branches. One is in Hendon, 20 Bell Lane, NW4 2AD. We got an answerphone, and the website gave one time for closing and the recorded message another. So we aimed at the earlier time, allowing extra time for heavy pre-Xmas evening traffic. The chocolates are available in square or round designs, flat, so you can see the contents. The round ones of mixed chocolates and other items from Fifteen pounds minus a penny, the chocolates only from twenty pounds.

The home which we visited was decorated with all sorts of happy Hanukah items. Banners said Happy Hanukah. A festoon of six-point stars (known as the star of David to Jews and the seal of Solomon to Muslims) in blue and silver was draped across the arched room divider wall. The dining table had Hanukah theme table paper napkins, spinning tops in the forms of a clown and dreidls. 

The evening events started with the lighting of Hanukah candles on a hanukiah. (A hanukiah is a nine-branch candlestick.)

The starter for our meal was carrot soup with ginger. And coconut. Recipes say coconut milk. Very colourful. Bright orange. The first time I had tried it. It was excellent.

Latkes

The main course was chicken with vegetables and latkes. Latkes are a favourite of mine. Grated potato fried in oil. A traditional food for Hanukkah because of the symbolism of the oil.

You can eat latkes all year round at B & K Salt Beef bar and deli. Branches are in Hatch End and Edgware.

Donuts

We discussed the fact that donuts with holes in the middle were invented in America. Donuts often had centres which did not get cooked through properly. So, one day, an American cook punched a hole through the middle of a donut and that solved the problem.

After the meal was sat telling stories and spinning the dreidls.

Useful Websites

Wikipedia - Hanukah

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanukkah

Grapevine Shops

https://www.kosherwine.co.uk/

tel> 020 8202 2631

Latkes and Salt Beef\

https://www.bksaltbeefbar.com/about

Donuts for hanukah time only in London, England, Margot Bakery 121 East End Rd, East Finchley.

https://www.margotbakery.co.uk/chanukah

Carrot and ginger soup recipe from the BBC

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/carrot-ginger-soup

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See The Unseen Magen Hidden In A Diamond & Seals of Solomon/ Stars of David/ 6 Point Stars Worldwide

 

Vies Diam, whose offices include one office in Mumbai, travelling worldwide to the jewellery and Gem show in Singapore in September 2022.

What a surprise! A six point star inside a diamond. Magen is shield, Hebrew for shield. (Also German for stomach.) But translated into English it becomes simply the star of David. A six point star is called a hexagram in Greek, a sexagram in Latin.

Jewish people call the six point star the star of David. As used on the Israeli flag. Moslems call it the shield of Solomon. I researched the Jews of Singapore for a project on religions for a group of Friends of The Museum in Singapore. My extensive searches into symbolism produced the theory that the six point star pre-dates even Judaism and goes back to a time when it was an amulet thought to trap evil or the devil inside the six points.

The diamond is quite small. With the aid of magnifying glass, set up above it, you can see the six point star, as shown on their billboard. 

I asked the people on their stand, 

'Is it for sale?'

'Yes, of course. We are diamond sellers.' 

'Did you create it?' I asked, thinking perhaps it was a sandwich.

'No, we found it. It has occurred naturally. We had lots of diamonds and were checking them all out and were surprised to see this.'

'Does it occur, naturally, often?'

'No. We had never seen one like it before. It's unique!'

I checked the GIA which is a trade journal. They did an analysis of the diamond and the inclusions. Yes, it

is a genuine pattern of inclusions, according to the analysis. Apparently, lines made up of a series of dots are quite frequent. You turn the diamond to see the combination of lines from different angles, then cut it to show the best view of the inclusion, or to remove the inclusion? 

 

I wondered who would buy it, at the right price? Maybe the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.

Useful Websites

https://www.gia.edu/gems-gemology/fall-2021-microworld-diamond-octahedral-inclusion

https://www.instagram.com/vies_diam/?hl=en

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_inclusions

Jewellery & Gem Fairs Worldwide (Mostly trade only)

Turkey - Istanbul

6-9 October 2022

16-19 March 2023

Middle East

Bahrain

22-26 November 2022

Dubai

12-14 Feb 2023

India - Hyderabad

9-11 June 2023

New Delhi

30 Sept-October 2nd 2023

Thailand

From other organizers

Fairs UK and Europe

https://www.eventseye.com/fairs/cst1_trade-shows_uk-united-kingdom_jewelry.html

Fairs In the USA

https://expotobi.com/country/usa/sector/gems-jewelry

Travel In real Life and around the Internet To See Six Point Stars on Buildings, in Museums, Objects, and in Books

ISRAEL

Armenian Cathedral of St Jacob, Jerusalem, Israel

Star shaped synagogue in Karlsruhe, Germany

Hannover Market Church, Germany

Humayun's tomb, Delhi, India

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humayun%27s_Tomb

INDIA

A detailed, chatty, look at the star used by Christians, Jews and Moslems.

https://simonarich.com/origins-of-the-star-of-david/

EUROPE &U

UK

Star in Winchester Cathedral, Hampshire, England

Winchester, UK

Worthing (railway) Station, West Sussex, England

Hort, London, England, Aerial view from Wikipedia article on hexagons

ITALY

Basilica_of_the_Holy_Cross,_facade,_Florence,_Italy

Seal of Solomon, intersected, on the mitre (hat) of the Pope. Europe

DENMARK

S Johannes Kirke, Copenhagan, Denmark

USA

Salt Lake Assembly Hall, Utah, USA

Please share links to your favourite posts

What Can you read and teach about Judaism, Islam, Christianity and Chinese from the star and Hebrew on a Synagogue or Jewish-built building in Singapore or Worldwide?

 Maghain Aboth synagogue in Singapore. Picture in Wikipedia.

What can you learn about Judaism from the top front of this building which you can see from the other side of the road and in close up photos? Or, if you already know about Judaism, what could you explain when showing a visitor around Singapore or around my blog post?

The Star

First the star. It is a six point star. Everything before and during the lifetime of Jesus was shared by the Jews whose descendants remained Jews as well as those who kept the Torah (first 5 books of Moses) as well as the Chritisans who kept the old Jewish books as the Old Testament and added the stories of Jesus as the New Testament. The star is six pointed, and is known to Moslems as the engaging alliterative seal of Solomon. I saw the six point star on a Muslim building in India. A more popular star for other religions and drawing a star in the sky is a five point star. The one with six points composed of two triangles is easier to draw with a ruler. Another version has it  the star filled in. 

Regarding reading the name of the synagogue, the first thing to notice about Hebrew is that you read from right to left. That\s the same as Arabic. A Moslem girlfriend of mine in Singapore was amazed and delighted to learn this. I remember her eyes opening wide, her mouth wide, her gasp of amazement, her excitement!

Who changed the direction of the alphabet? I don't know. I shall find out and tell you later. 

The Chinese write up and down, side to side, in any direction which suits. In the lifts (elevators) in cashew Heights and other condos, the floor numbers go from top to bottom in one column and then up and down in the second column. Very confusing to the Brits who expect numbers to start at the bottom, go across, then the same upwards. At first sight, getting in and out of the lift fast between floors, it looked random. 

So, I tell my Chinese friends, Hebrew and Arabic words go from right to left. A Chinese friend of mine was not phased, impressed or surprised. To him, just a fact.

Starting from the right, the letters for the Hebrew name of Magain Aboth, shield of our fathers, the first letter is M. It is a curved letter, a bit like a McDonalds arch. 

The vowels are not shown when capital letters are carved onto a building. Think of it as being a bit like text language on a mobile phone. Or Speedwriting. So the next two letter of the first word are G and N. The G is like a G turned around because you are writing in the opposite direction.

The N is the final letter of the word and final letters are either longer or shorter. Think of the English word happily. In the middle of the word we write the i quickly but stick a dot on top to help identify the vowel. Hebrew also has vowels on top, or in the middle, or underneath, to help distinguish them in handwriting, cursive or curved and connected, but may lose the dots and dashes in large or capital letters. The final letter in the English word happily has a curvy tail, a fancy end to the word. Notice fancy and curvy also end with the curvy Y. But the words in and this and cursive and with and middle and final have the short i with the dot in the middle. 

The dots for vowels ai and uh and o are missing from the lettering. However like the i under the dot, you can see placeholders for the missing vowels. What looks a bit like a cross is a placeholder for the A or aleph. The second letter of the word is b, as in alphabet (a Greek word, but the Hebrew is nearly the same, aleph, bet). The b is also facing the other way. It has a curve like the lower half of the letter b. 

The letter for the vowel O is a bit like the letter i. Finally the letter Th looks a bit like the letters t and h scrunched together. Or, if you prefer, just the h with the fancy feet, like the Italic h with a shortened upright.

Here is the Hebrew alphabet in box form which is half way down the article in Wikipedia.

Alef	Bet	Gimel	Dalet	He	Waw/Vav	Zayin	Chet	Tet	Yod	Kaf
א‎	ב‎	ג‎	ד‎	ה‎	ו‎	ז‎	ח‎	ט‎	י‎	כ‎
										ך‎
Lamed	Mem	Nun	Samech	Ayin	Pe	Tsadik	Qof	Resh	Shin	Tav
ל‎	מ‎	נ‎	ס‎	ע‎	פ‎	צ‎	ק‎	ר‎	ש‎	ת‎
	ם‎	ן‎			ף‎	ץ‎

Useful Websites

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_alphabet

About the Author

Angela Lansbury, is a semi-retired travel writer still researching bucket list countries and seeking out the special, unusual, people, places,  landmarks, hotels, museums and trails, fabulous foods, recipes, clothes and online souvenir shopping.

Angela Lansbury is a member of Toastmasters International.

About the Author Angela Lansbury

The Author - Quick Quotations

Angela Lansbury B A Hons  is the author of ten books by regular publishers plus another ten self-published books. 

About Angela The Speaker & Trainer

Angela Lansbury is a teacher of English and other languages to Toastmasters clubs and businesses.

Braddell Heights Advanced Toastmasters Speakers Vice President  Public Relations, Immediate Past President. VPPR

Former Area Director S3. Club Coach for Nee Soon South Toastmasters Club.

Also Member of: TCA Toastmasters Club; Singapore Online Dynamic; Harrovians UK

BHA

Past meetings have included Garen Tee on using story telling in business, on 

bha.learncool.sg/meet/bha . 

Recent meetings of BHA included an educational session on using Powerpoint for posters.

Next BHA meetings, always first Wednesday evening, 7 pm Singapore time. Next meeting is  the third Saturday afternoon, June 19th 2pm Singapore time.  Inauguration of the new committee was by the incoming Director of S, plus a lively speech on teamwork.

Next meetings will be on these dates (unless a national holiday in Singapore or worldwide)

Themes and word of the day are tentative

2021

JULY - JUBILANT JULY

Theme/WOD Jubilant

WORKSHOPS & EDUCATIONAL SESSIONS (based on level one of Pathways)

1 Your first speech or role EASY ENGLISH LANGUAGE (Articles A and The, Plurals, Tenses, Pronunciation, Singlish)

2 CHOOSE YOUR PATH

Wed July 7th 

Saturday 17th

July 4rh American Independence Day.

2021 AUGUST - AWESOME AUGUST

1 Pathway Level 1 Introductory Speeches

2 Evaluations

Wed 4th

Sat 21

2021 SEPT - SUPER SEPTEMBER

Wed 1st

Sat 18th SPEECH CONTESTS

Humorous Speech Contest

Table Topics Contest

2021 OCT - ODD OCTOBER

Wed 6th

Sat 16th

2021 NOV - NOVELTY NOVEMBER

Wed 3rd

Sat 20th Wed

Diwali Hindu Festival of lights Nov 4th.

Nov 25th American Thanksgiving.

Hanukah starts 28 Dec 8 days until Dec 6. Jewish Festival of lights, celebrated by Jesus.

2021 DEC - DARLING DECEMBER

Wed  1st (Hanukah if not previous month. Festival foods.)

Sat 18th

Speech on 

JAN 2022 - JOYFUL JANUARY

Wed Jan 5th New beginning - forget the past

Sat 15 Long-term plans = for the future/Chinese New Year (CNY for short)

2022 FEB FUN FEBRUARY

Theme Love and romance - Chinese New Year

Feb 1st and 2nd are holidays - do we move this Feb 2nd meeting date?)

Wed 2nd (Valentine's Day Mon Feb 14)

Sat 19th

2022 MAR - MARVELLOUS MARCH

Theme

Wed 2nd

Sat 19

March 1st is Christian Pancake day. 

2022 APR - APRIL'S AIMS

Wed 6th

Sat 16th

Muslim Ramadan 1-30 April.

Jewish Passover (Seder meal=Last supper) April

 16

2022 MAY - MODERNISING MAY

Wed 4th

Sat 21

2022 JUN - JUBILANT JUNE

Wed 1st

Sat 18th

Jul 6, Jul 16, Aug 3, Aug 20, Sept 7, Sept 17, Oct 5, Oct 15, Nov 2, Nov 19, Dec 7, Dec 17.

Angela The Blogger 

Angela has several blogs speeches, comedy and song writing and organizing, writing intermittently, but writes almost daily on these three:

travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

See many varied posts such as the post on sculptor Tom Harvey.

Please share links to your favourite posts.