Crepuscular rays.  Also called Buddha’s Fingers, sun rays, Ropes of Maui, sun drawing water, Jacob’s Ladder, and a great many other appellations.  Such visuals occur when sunlight passes around an obstacle (e.g., clouds, trees or the horizon).  They are created by the physical processes of scattering, reflection and diffraction, and the optical process called linear perspective.  They are called crepuscular rays when they diverge from a central point and anticrepuscular rays when they converge toward the antisolar point.

Despite their frequency and simple origins, crepuscular rays have beguiled me since I was a child.  No matter the circumstances, they always stop me in my tracks and cause me to take notice.