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From the household cat to horses that can fly, a surprisingly wide range of animals feature in religions and mythologies all across the world. The same animal can take on different roles: the raven can be a symbol of evil, a harbinger of death, a wise messenger or a shape-changing trickster. In Norse mythology, Odin's magical ravens perch on his shoulders and bring him news. This compendium draws upon religious texts and myths to explore the ways sacred traditions use animal images, themes and associations in rituals, ceremonies, texts, myths, literature and folklore across the world. Sections are organized by the main animal classifications such as mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, amphibians...
This introduction to modern Druidism provides a comprehensive overview of today's Pagan religion and philosophy, whose roots are in the Celtic tribal societies of ancient Britain and Ireland. The author covers Druidism's mythology, history and important figures and its beliefs and moral system, and describes practices, rituals and ceremonies. A gazetteer of important sacred sites is included, along with information about modern Druid groups and organizations.
'The Atlantic as Mythical Space' is a study of medieval culture and its concomitant myths, legends and fantastic narratives as it developed along the European Atlantic seaboard. It is an inclusive study that touches upon early medieval Ireland, the pre-Hispanic Canary Islands, the Iberian Peninsula, courtly-love France and the pagan and early-Christian British Isles. The obvious and consequential ligature that runs throughout the different sections of this text is the Atlantic Ocean, a bewildering expanse of mythical substance that for centuries fueled the imagination of ocean-side peoples. It analyzes how and why myths with the Atlantic as preferential stage are especially relevant in pagan...
In some respects, the contrasts of Christmas are what make it the most delightful time of the year. It is a time of generosity, kindness and peace on earth, with broad permission to indulge in food, drink and gifts. On the other hand, Christmas has become a battleground for raging culture wars, marred by debates about how it should be celebrated and acknowledged as a uniquely Christian holiday. This text argues that much of the animosity is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the holiday's core character. By tracing Christmas's origins as a pagan celebration of the winter solstice and its development in Europe's Christianization, this history explains that the true "reason for the season" has as much to do with the earth's movement around the sun as with the birth of Christ. Chapters chronicle how Christmas's magic and misrule link to the nativity, and why the carnival side of the holiday appears so separated from traditional Christian beliefs.
From the household cat to horses that can fly, a surprisingly wide range of animals feature in religions and mythologies all across the world. The same animal can take on different roles: the raven can be a symbol of evil, a harbinger of death, a wise messenger or a shape-changing trickster. In Norse mythology, Odin's magical ravens perch on his shoulders and bring him news. This compendium draws upon religious texts and myths to explore the ways sacred traditions use animal images, themes and associations in rituals, ceremonies, texts, myths, literature and folklore across the world. Sections are organized by the main animal classifications such as mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, amphibians...
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Donkeys and dogs, foxes and lions, cats, crocodiles, cows and cranes, hares and horse, fleas and flies -- all make their appearance in these delightful, and often edifying, tales from the medieval religious literature of three traditions : Christian, Jewish, and Islamic. Most of the human beings who make their appearance in these tales represent the best of their kind, and Professor Bell warns that no animal who reads this book should unwarily assume that the majority of humankind resembles them.
This book fulfils a keenly-felt need for a modern, comprehensive dictionary of Scottish Gaelic into English. The numerous examples of usage and idiom in this work have been modelled on examples culled from modern literature, and encompass many registers ranging from modern colloquial speech, to more elaborate literary constructions. The main contemporary terms and idiomatic phraseology, often not available in other dictionaries, provide excellent models for easier language learning. In addition to the main dictionary, the volume contains introductory material, providing guidance on using the dictionary, spelling and pronunciation. There are also twelve useful appendices which cover not only the various parts of speech, lenition and proper nouns, but also address the more difficult issues of expressing time, direction and numerals. The clarity of the design and layout of the volume will greatly ease the process of attaining mastery of the Gaelic language.
Sacred Disobedience: A Jungian Analysis of the Saga of Pan and the Devil traces the ancient Greek God Pan, who became distorted into the image of the Devil in early Christianity. When Pan was demonized, the powerful qualities he represented became repressed, as Pan’s visage twisted into the model of the Devil. This book follows a Jungian analysis of this development. In ancient Greek religion, Pan was worshipped as an honored deity, corresponding to an inner psycho-spiritual condition in which the primitive qualities he represented were fully integrated into consciousness, and these qualities were valued and affirmed as holy. But in the era of early Christianity Pan “dies,” and the Dev...
This book is the result of requests by family and friends to share the author's photographs of Africa. The verses just evolved. It is meant to be read aloud so children can learn to love the sound of their own language in addition to learning about the wonderful animals of Africa as they live in the wild.