From Earth Spirits to Sky Gods
From Earth Spirits to Sky Gods

Author: Bruce Lerro

Publisher: Lexington Books

Published: 2000

Total Pages: 362

ISBN-13: 9780739100981

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In this thought-provoking new book, Bruce Lerro offers a speculative reconstruction of the sacred beliefs and practices of cultures existing between 30,000 and 500 B.C.E. Lerro describes how material changes in various social formations--including hunting-gathering bands and horticulturalists in villages--were responsible for the shift from magic to realism, from the belief in earth spirits to faith in sky gods. Drawing from such diverse theorists as Marx and Engels, Vygotsky, Piaget, and George Herbert Mead, Lerro critiques and transforms mechanical, humanistic, new age, and countercultural perspectives on the history of sacred traditions. This study of comparative religion and mythology has important applications for the fields of archaeology, evolutionary anthropology, sociology, political science, and comparative psychology.

The Deities Are Many
The Deities Are Many

Author: Jordan Paper

Publisher: State University of New York Press

Published: 2012-02-01

Total Pages: 172

ISBN-13: 0791483622

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The Deities Are Many is a lively and learned introduction to polytheism. Drawing from both his scholarly research and his personal experience, author Jordan Paper is the ideal guide into this milieu. Paper was drawn to polytheism through his love of nature, seeing it as a source of the divine. In this book he focuses on Chinese and Native American religious traditions, as well as West African, African-Brazilian, Hindu, Polynesian, and circum-Polar traditions, to describe the theology of polytheism. The book provides a topology of polytheistic deities, focusing on the cosmic couple, Father Sky and Mother Earth; animal, plant, and mineral deities; ancestral spirits; divine ghosts; and culture heroes and tricksters. Paper also shows how monotheists misunderstand polytheism and provides a polytheist perspective on what it means to be human when the "deities are many." This is a fascinating, illuminating book, especially for those raised in monotheistic societies.

Dictionary of Nature Myths
Dictionary of Nature Myths

Author: Tamra Andrews

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Published: 2000

Total Pages: 302

ISBN-13: 0195136772

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Comprehensive and cross-referenced, this informative volume is a rich introduction to the world of nature as experienced by ancient peoples around the globe. 51 halftones.

Earth, Sky, Gods and Mortals
Earth, Sky, Gods and Mortals

Author: Jay B. McDaniel

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2009-08-01

Total Pages: 229

ISBN-13: 1606089129

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In this innovative volume, Jay McDaniel creatively weaves various strands of contemporary theology into a vibrant pattern for an ecological spirituality. Influenced by process theology, the author synthesizes core insights of feminism, liberation theology, creation theology, and world religions. He focuses this varied knowledge around the central theme of an ecologically sound and nurturing faith. The work is strengthened by provocative study questions, an insightful appendix on the role of silence in ecological spirituality, and a comprehensive, annotated bibliography.

Range of Ghosts
Range of Ghosts

Author: Elizabeth Bear

Publisher: Tor Books

Published: 2012-03-27

Total Pages: 335

ISBN-13: 1429986484

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A powerful new fantasy from Hugo award–winning author Elizabeth Bear, Range of Ghosts creates a world both deep and broad, where a sorcerer-prince seeks world domination for the glory of his God. Temur, grandson of the Great Khan, is walking from a battlefield where he was left for dead. All around lie the fallen armies of his cousin and his brother who made war to rule the Khaganate. Temur is now the legitimate heir by blood to his grandfather's throne, but he is not the strongest. Going into exile is the only way to survive his ruthless cousin. Once-Princess Samarkar is climbing the thousand steps of the Citadel of the Wizards of Tsarepheth. She was heir to the Rasan Empire until her father got a son on a new wife. Then she was sent to be the wife of a Prince in Song, but that marriage ended in battle and blood. Now she has renounced her worldly power to seek the magical power of the wizards. These two will come together to stand against the hidden cult that has so carefully brought all the empires of the Celadon Highway to strife and civil war through guile and deceit and sorcerous power. The Eternal Sky Trilogy #1 Range of Ghosts #2 Shattered Pillars #3 Steles of the Sky At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Spirit and the Obligation of Social Flesh
Spirit and the Obligation of Social Flesh

Author: Sharon V. Betcher

Publisher: Fordham Univ Press

Published: 2013-11-11

Total Pages: 258

ISBN-13: 0823253929

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Drawing on philosophical reflection, spiritual and religious values, and somatic practice, Spirit and the Obligation of Social Flesh offers guidance for moving amidst the affective dynamics that animate the streets of the global cities now amassing around our planet. Here theology turns decidedly secular. In urban medieval Europe, seculars were uncloistered persons who carried their spiritual passion and sense of an obligated life into daily circumambulations of the city. Seculars lived in the city, on behalf of the city, but—contrary to the new profit economy of the time—with a different locus of value: spirit. Betcher argues that for seculars today the possibility of a devoted life, the practice of felicity in history, still remains. Spirit now names a necessary “prosthesis,” a locus for regenerating the elemental commons of our interdependent flesh and thus for cultivating spacious and fearless empathy, forbearance, and generosity. Her theological poetics, though based in Christianity, are frequently in conversation with other religions resident in our postcolonial cities.

African Mythology, A to Z
African Mythology, A to Z

Author: Patricia Ann Lynch

Publisher: Infobase Publishing

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 179

ISBN-13: 143813133X

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The African continent is home to a fascinating and strong tradition of myth, due in part to the long history of human habitation in Africa; the diversity of its geography, flora, and fauna; and the variety of its cultural beliefs. African Mythology A to Z is a readable reference to the deities, places, events, animals, beliefs, and other subjects that appear in the myths of various African peoples. For the first time, this edition features full-color photographs and illustrations.Coverage includes:

Images of Indian Goddesses
Images of Indian Goddesses

Author: Madhu Bazaz Wangu

Publisher: Abhinav Publications

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 9788170174165

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Goddess Images Are Omnipresent Within The Cultural Fabric Of India, Yet Most Indians Are Unaware Of Uplifting Meanings These Images Convey. In The Book, Images Of Indian Goddesses,. Dr. Madhu Bazaz Wangu Explains The Emergence Of Indian Goddesses Within The Changing Social, Political And Cultural Environment From The Prehistoric To The Present Times And Explains Their Metaphysical Meanings. Why Are Hindu Goddesses Paradoxical In Nature? Why Are They Portrayed As Erotic And Maternal Simultaneously? Why Do They Have Multiple Arms? Why Do Some Of Them Have Their Own Vehicle (Vahana) And Some Do Not? Why Are Such Images Portrayed On The Popular Calendar- Posters? The Book Answers Such Questions And Helps The Reader Understand Their Meanings. The Goddesses Discussed Range From The Devoted Sita To The Sinister Kali; From The Warrior Durga To The Auspicious Shri Lakshmi; From The Erotic Radha To The Serene Sarasvati And Many Others. Dr. Wangu Firmly Feels That If Experienced Hindu Goddesses Have A Potential For Stimulating The Onlooker'S Innermost Self. Experiencing Goddess Imagery Uplifts This Worldly Life And Ponders The Nature Of The Other -Worldly Existence. Furthermore, The Book Argues That The Goddesses Are Stimulating And Empowering Models Not Only For Indian Women But For All. Images Of Indian Goddesses Helps A Common Person Understand And Appreciate The Bewildering Number Of Female Images Expressed In India'S Sacred Art. The Book Is Not Only Absorbing And Inspiring, It Also Offers A Visual Treasury Of Goddess Art Images. Its Text Is Food For The Mind And The Illustrations Are A Feast For The Eyes.

The Thinking Past
The Thinking Past

Author: Adrian Cole

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Published: 2014-08-26

Total Pages: 577

ISBN-13: 0199794626

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"This book takes an analytical approach to world history. Instead of proceeding through history descriptively, it looks at several major questions and ideas, such as the role of technology, the development of universal religions, global trade, or participatory politics. If this sounds thematic, it is. But it also progresses chronologically, analyzing these themes as they apply in certain eras. We use both primary sources in-text, and the latest scholarship as secondary source. These we use frequently in each chapter both to employ the voices of scholars where they say things better than we could, and footnote them for students' reference. We also hope to convey the sense that all this content is part of an ongoing debate amongst historians--and scholars from different disciplines. Finally we attempt to keep the text accessible by focusing on narrative elements of history, and keeping in mind that the readers are undergraduates, often with little exposure to the subject matter. However, the level of ideas remains high"--Provided by publisher.