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The Nautilus Magazine
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Her hard work, perseverance and right thinking proved to herself and others that anyone can attract success if they followed certain steps.
On the title page of every issue of The Nautilus Magazine, Elizabeth included Oliver Wendell Holmes' poem:
The Chambered Nautilus
As the swift seasons roll! Leave thy low vaulted past!
Let each new temple nobler than the last,
Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast,
Till thou at length art free,
Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unresting sea!"
The Meaning of The Nautilus
Why was this incredible creature chosen as the symbol of Mrs. Towne's The Nautilus Magazine?
by the Chambered Nautilus."
The nautilus is a cephalopod mollusk belonging to the sole surviving genus (Nautilus) of a subclass that flourished 200 million years ago, known as the nautiloids. The spirally coiled shell consists of a series of chambers; as the nautilus grows it secretes larger chambers, sealing off the old ones.
"As the nautilus grows, it creates new, wider and larger chambers that are perfectly proportionate. A lifeline connects one chamber to the next, so previous rooms are left behind but not forgotten.
"It reminds us that growth is part of the Universe's creation, and even as there are profound changes in the world around it, the Chambered Nautilus thrives. The Chambered Nautilus is emblematic of ideas, vision for discovery, rigorous scientific inquiry, innovation, renewal, continuity, change and interconnectedness."
-Creighton University, Omaha, NE
The Metaphor of The Nautilus
No one describes the spiritual meaning of this amazing creature better than author and owner of beyondreligion.com John W. Sloat:
"Oliver Wendell Holmes, a century and a half ago, saw the metaphorical significance of the chambered home of the Nautilus. These fascinating sea shells are spiral in shape and consist of a series of ever-larger chambers in each of which the sea creature lives for a season until it outgrows that particular space.
"The nautilus then enlarges its shell by the addition of a new chamber suitable for the next stage of its life. What a perfect image for spiritual evolution! In order to begin a new stage in our growth, we have to think "outside the box."
"Yet, every time we abandon an old worldview for a new and wider vision, we merely find ourselves in a larger box. And while each box serves its particular function for a time, we are always in danger of claiming that the chamber we currently occupy is the ultimate one.
"The spiral shape of the nautilus shell suggests that it can keep growing forever. There is no design for a "final" chamber. The creature must keep building new chambers as long as it lives. It cannot go back to the previous ones; they no longer fit. It cannot stay in its present space or it will die. It has no choice but to move on. And on.
"Perhaps one day we might be able to create for ourselves a box so large that it would encompass all of God. But that space would then include everything, even those realities which we now purposely exclude by limiting the size of today's chamber."
Elizabeth's choice for the magazine's name was quite deliberate.
Here's a picture of the stately building where the magazine was housed. The building still stands to this day in Holyoke, Massachussets.
The Nautilus Magazine Headquarters.
Expect MORE from The Nautilus Magazine (sign-up here) and Mrs. Towne, a woman who really 'walked her talk'. And more resources for creating the life you desire!
Here's a
sample of a 1912 issue of the magazine.
Elizabeth and her husband and business partner, William E. Towne.
This site is a growing work in progress and a labor of love...though it doesn't feel like work at all! It's a joy to research, add and more importantly apply the principles outlined by Mrs. Towne.
something in which you can express yourself."
-Elizabeth Towne
How to Grow Success
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