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Possible definitions for whau

whale
Any of several species of exclusively aquatic mammals found in oceans, seas, rivers, and estuaries worldwide but especially numerous in the Antarctic Ocean. Whales are commonly distinguished from the smaller porpoises and mammalian dolphins and sometimes from narwhals, but they are all cetaceans. See also baleen whale, toothed whale.


bhakti
S Asian devotional movement, particularly in Hinduism, emphasizing the love of a devotee for his or her personal god. In contrast to Advaita, bhakti assumes a dualistic relationship between devotee and deity. Though Vishnu, Shiva, and Shakti (see shakti) all have cults, bhakti characteristically developed around Vishnu's incarnations as Rama and Krishna. Practices include reciting the god's name, singing hymns, wearing his emblem, and making pilgrimages. The fervor of S. Indian hymnists in the 7th-10th cent. spread bhakti and inspired much poetry and art. Poets such as Mirabai conceived of the relationship between the worshiper and the god in familiar human terms (e.g., the lover and beloved), while more abstract poets such as Kabir and Nanak portrayed the divinity as singular and ineffable.


Bhasa
Indian dramatist. The earliest known dramatist in Sanskrit, he was known only by the allusions of other Sanskrit dramatists until the texts of 13 of his dramas were discovered and published in 1912. Most of his works are adaptations of themes of heroism and romantic love borrowed from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. He diverged from the conventions of the time by portraying battles and killings on the stage. His influence is seen in the works of Kalidasa.


Braun
German mistress of A. Hitler. A saleswoman in the shop of Hitler's photographer, she became his mistress in the 1930s, living first in a house he provided in Munich, then at his chalet in Berchtesgaden. He never allowed her to be seen in public with him, and she had no influence on his political life. In April 1945 she joined him in Berlin, against his orders. In recognition of her loyalty, he married her in a civil ceremony in the Chancellery bunker on April 29. The next day Eva Hitler ended her life at 33 by taking poison; her husband either poisoned or shot himself at her side. Their bodies were burned.

German-U.S. rocket engineer. Born into an aristocratic family, he received his doctorate from the Univ. of Berlin. In 1936 he became technical director of the new military development facility at Peenemü nde, an essential center for the rearmament of Nazi Germany, forbidden by the Versailles accords. Liquid-fueled rocket aircraft and jet-assisted takeoffs were successfully demonstrated there, and the V-2 long-range ballistic missile and the Wasserfall supersonic antiaircraft missile were developed. By 1944 the sophistication of the rockets and missiles being tested at Peenemü nde was many years ahead of that of any other country. After World War II he and his team ...

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