In this collection, Leila Castle has gathered together women writing about spiritual initiation, identity, and transformation. Their pilgrimages are inspired by places sacred to many traditions worldwide—among them Old European Goddess, geomancy, Tibetan Buddhism, Native American, Peruvian shamanism, and Mayan. Their stories explore interdependence and autonomy, connection to the earth, and developing a new spiritual voice. They relate journeys to far-off Australia, Hawaii, and Africa, as well as to rural England and New Mexico. Sometimes they write and about becoming a person vastly different from the wife, mother, artist student, or academic individual who started the journey. Inspiring and illuminating, these are adventures stories into the unknown and deeply felt. Honoring the sacred feminine energy of the earth, these women are also working towards rebalancing male and female energies in culture and relationships.
Hollyberry trims the Christmas tree, goes sky-skating, makes snow angels in the clouds, sings Christmas carols, and receives a special surprise when she opens her Christmas presents
Joe has always loved the moorlands above his home: the wildness, the freedom, the peace. But since his father died, everything has changed, and the moors are no longer a place of refuge. Now the whole community is divided over the fate of the hen harriers that nest up there in the heather - and Joe is stuck right in the middle, with a choice to make, and a huge secret to keep. Joe can't do what's right for everyone. But can he find the strength to fight for what he really believes in? Expert storyteller Gill Lewis presents a beautiful tale of loss, expectation, and change - with an important and thought-provoking environmental message.
Sunny has trouble deciding what to wear to Moon Shimmer's birthday costume party, until she decides to look at what's under her nose and to use her imagination
Beloved by young girls around the world, Hasbro's My Little Pony franchise has been mired in controversy since its debut in the early 1980s. Critics dismissed the cartoons as toy advertisements, and derided their embrace of femininity. The 2010 debut of the openly feminist My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic renewed the backlash, as its broad appeal challenged entrenched notions about gendered entertainment. This first comprehensive study of My Little Pony explores the history and cultural significance of the franchise through Season 5 of Friendship Is Magic and the first three Equestria Girls films. The brand has continued to be on the receiving end of a sexist double standard regarding commercialism in children's entertainment, while masculine cartoons such as the Transformers have been spared similar criticism.
Dance Anatomy is a visually stunning presentation of more than 100 of the most effective dance, movement, and performance exercises, each designed to promote correct alignment, improved placement, proper breathing, and prevention of common injuries.
A fresh interpretation of the dakini—a Tibetan Buddhist symbol of the feminine—that will appeal to practitioners interested in goddess worship, female spirituality, and Tantric Buddhism The primary emblem of the feminine in Tibetan Buddhism is the dakini, or “sky-dancer,” a semi-wrathful spirit-woman who manifests in visions, dreams, and meditation experiences. Western scholars and interpreters of the dakini, influenced by Jungian psychology and feminist goddess theology, have shaped a contemporary critique of Tibetan Buddhism in which the dakini is seen as a psychological “shadow,” a feminine savior, or an objectified product of patriarchal fantasy. According to Judith Simmer-Brown—who writes from the point of view of an experienced practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism—such interpretations are inadequate. In the spiritual journey of the meditator, Simmer-Brown demonstrates, the dakini symbolizes levels of personal realization: the sacredness of the body, both female and male; the profound meeting point of body and mind in meditation; the visionary realm of ritual practice; and the empty, spacious qualities of mind itself. When the meditator encounters the dakini, living spiritual experience is activated in a nonconceptual manner by her direct gaze, her radiant body, and her compassionate revelation of reality. Grounded in the author's personal encounter with the dakini, this unique study will appeal to both male and female spiritual seekers interested in goddess worship, women's spirituality, and the tantric tradition.