(Quick Reference) # 8.2.1.1 Variables and Scopes Version: 3.2.8 ## 8.2.1.1 Variables and Scopes Within the `<% %>` brackets you can declare variables:
    <% now = new Date() %>
and then access those variables later in the page:
    <%=now%>
Within the scope of a GSP there are a number of pre-defined variables, including: `application` - The ServletContext instance `applicationContext` The Spring ApplicationContext instance `flash` - The flash object `grailsApplication` - The GrailsApplication instance `out` - The response writer for writing to the output stream `params` - The params object for retrieving request parameters `request` - The HttpServletRequest instance `response` - The HttpServletResponse instance `session` - HttpSession instance `webRequest` - The GrailsWebRequest instance | Quick Reference (hide)