With potent, lyrical language and a profound knowledge of storytelling, Shaw encourages and illuminates the mythic in our own lives. He is a modern-day bard. Madeline Miller, author of Circe and The Song of Achilles Through feral tales and poetic exegesis, Martin Shaw makes you re-see the world, as a place of adventure and of initiation, as perfect home and as perfectly other. What a gift. David Keenan, author of Xstabeth At a time when we are all confronted by not one, but many crossroads in our modern lives - identity, technology, trust, love, politics and a global pandemic - celebrated mythologist and wilderness guide Martin Shaw delivers Smoke Hole: three metaphors to help us understand our world, one that is assailed by the seductive promises of social media and shadowed by a health crisis that has brought loneliness and isolation to an all-time high. We are losing our sense of direction, our sense of self. We have "networks", not communities. Smoke Hole is a passionate call to arms and an invitation to use these stories to face the complexities of contemporary life, from fake news, parenthood, climate crises, addictive technology and more. Martin asks that we journey together, and let these stories be our allies, that we breathe deeper, feel steadier and become acquainted with rapture. He writes, 'It is not good to be walking through these times without a story or three by your side.' Available now as a podcast! Subscribe to Smoke Hole Sessions to hear amazing conversations between Martin Shaw and some of our most admired writers, actors, comedians, musicians and more, including: Sir Mark Rylance, Tommy Tiernan (Derry Girls), David Keenan (For the Good Times, This is Memorial Device), Jay Griffiths (Wild, Why Rebel), John Densmore (The Doors), Natasha Khan (Bat for Lashes), John Mitchinson (QI, Backlisted podcast) and others. Subscribe to Smoke Hole Sessions * On Apple here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/smoke-hole-sessions/id1566369928 * On Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2ISKkqLlP1EzAOni9f9gGt?si=lnq8jApxRlGZ2qpLlQaOSg

Despite the attention that has already been paid to the theme of creation in the book of Sirach, scholarship has yet to provide a comprehensive analysis of Ben Sira's instruction regarding the cosmic order and its role in the divine bestowal of wisdom upon human beings. This book, which consists of two parts, fills a lacuna in scholarship by offering such an analysis. The first part of this study examines Ben Sira's three main treatments of the created world, thus providing a comprehensive description and synthesis of Ben Sira's doctrine concerning the created order of the cosmos. The second part of this work analyzes the place of human beings in general, and the Jewish people in particular, within the cosmic order. This second part includes an analysis of the role of the created order in Ben Sira's wisdom instruction in 1:1-10 and 24:1-34 as well as an elucidation of the way in which his treatments of various kinds of people-civic leaders, wives, doctors, manual laborers, scribes, and cultic personnel-are integral to Ben Sira's doctrine of creation. This study demonstrates that the created order is a fundamental category that Ben Sira relies upon in articulating his instructions about wisdom and wise behavior.

Disputation literature is a type of text in which usually two non-human entities (such as trees, animals, drinks, or seasons) try to establish their superiority over each other by means of a series of speeches written in an elaborate, flowery register. As opposed to other dialogue literature, in disputation texts there is no serious matter at stake only the preeminence of one of the litigants over its rival. These light-hearted texts are known in virtually every culture that flourished in the Middle East from Antiquity to the present day, and they constitute one of the most enduring genres in world literature. The present volume collects over twenty contributions on disputation literature by a diverse group of world-renowned scholars. From ancient Sumer to modern-day Bahrain, from Egyptian to Neo-Aramaic, including Latin, French, Middle English, Armenian, Chinese and Japanese, the chapters of this book study the multiple avatars of this venerable text type.

This book provides a wide-ranging collection of original source material that covers the history of medieval religion from the fall of the Roman Empire to the Renaissance.

Easy-to-read and accessible to students, with introductions to each section explaining the main themes and issues raised, it provides coverage of the key elements of the history of the Western Church in the period, including:

• the Papacy
• saints
• monastic orders
• popular piety and devotion
• sections on the Eastern Church, Judaism, Islam and Mysticism

The texts selected are arranged clearly in chronological order and each one is introduced by a brief editorial note to provide context. Medieval Religion also includes a comprehensive further reading section.

Students of medieval religion will find this a valuable companion in their studies.

Babylonia in the second half of the 2nd millennium BCE is one of the most understudied periods of Mesopotamian history. In the last few years, discoveries of new texts and archaeological materials from the Sealand Dynasty have emerged, which expand the possibilities to fill this gap in our knowledge of Mesopotamian history. At the same time, scholars have started to revive Kassite studies using new materials, methods, and questions. While those works are groundbreaking contributions to the field, many questions about the history and chronology, archaeology, economy, language of Babylonia during this period are still unsolved. This volume brings together eleven contributions by leading scholars in the Sealand and Kassite period, approaching those questions from an archaeological, ethnological, historical, linguistic, and economical point of view. The book opens with an introduction into the history and research on Babylonia under the Sealand Dynasty and the Kassites.

Medea, the sorceress of Greek myth and Euripides' vengeful heroine, is famed for the murder of her children after she is banished from her own family and displaced by a new wife. Her reputation as a wronged 'Everywoman' of Greek tragedy has helped engender her lasting appeal to the modern age. However, this firmly rooted status has also caused many of the intricacies of her timeless tale to be overlooked.
Emma Griffiths brings into focus previously unexplored themes of the Medea myth, along with providing an incisive introduction to the story and its history. Viewed within its context, the tale reveals fascinating insights into ancient Greece and its ideology, the importance of children, the role of women, and the position of the outsider and barbarian.
The critically sophisticated analysis, expressed in clear and accessible terms, proceeds to examine the persistence of the Medea myth through ancient Rome to the modern day. Placing the myth within a modern context and into analytical frameworks such as psychoanalysis, Griffiths highlights Medea's position in current classical study, as well as her lasting appeal. A vivid portrait of a woman empowered by her exclusion from society, alive with passion and the suffering of wounded love, this book is an indispensable guide to a fascinating mythical figure.

This is an exploration of how the legend of Thor has been adopted, adapted and transformed through history. The myths of the Norse god Thor were preserved in the "Icelandic Eddas", set down in the early Middle Ages. The bane of giants and trolls, Thor was worshipped as the last line of defence against all that threatened early Nordic society. Thor's significance persisted long after the Christian conversion and, in the mid-eighteenth century, Thor resumed a symbolic prominence among northern countries. Admired and adopted in Scandinavia and Germany, he became central to the rhetoric of national romanticism and to more belligerent assertions of nationalism. Resurrected in the latter part of the twentieth century in "Marvel Magazine", Thor was further transformed into an articulation both of an anxious male sexuality and of a parallel nervousness regarding American foreign policy. Martin Arnold explores the extraordinary regard in which Thor has been held since medieval times and considers why and how his myth has been adopted, adapted and transformed.

Though many practitioners of yoga and meditation are familiar with the Sri Cakra yantra, few fully understand the depth of meaning in this representation of the cosmos. Even fewer have been exposed to the practices of mantra and puja (worship) associated with it. Andre Padoux, with Roger Orphe-Jeanty, offers the first English translation of the Yoginihrdaya, a seminal Hindu tantric text dating back to the 10th or 11th century CE. The Yoginihrdaya discloses to initiates the secret of the Heart of the Yogini, or the supreme Reality: the divine plane where the Goddess (Tripurasundari, or Consciousness itself) manifests her power and glory. As Padoux demonstrates, the Yoginihrdaya is not a philosophical treatise aimed at expounding particular metaphysical tenets. It aims to show a way towards liberation, or, more precisely, to a tantric form of liberation in this life--jivanmukti, which grants both liberation from the fetters of the world and domination over it.

Gathering together under a single cover material from a wide range of African societies, this volume allows similarities and differences to be easily perceived and suggests social correlates of these in terms of age, sex, marital status, social grading and wealth. It includes material on both traditional and modern cults.

Ever since its first publication in 1932, Sorcerers of Dobu has been recognized as one of the great triumphs of anthropological research and interpretation in the field of ethnography. A rich source of information on primitive psychology, the book presents sociological analysis of the complex tribal organisation of the Dobuans.
Originally published in 1932

Few thinkers have been as influential as Augustine of Hippo. His writings, such as Confessions and City of God, have left an indelible mark on Western Christianity. He has become so synonymous with Christianity in the West that we easily forget he was a man of two cultures: African and Greco-Roman. The mixture of African Christianity and Greco-Roman rhetoric and philosophy gave his theology and ministry a unique potency in the cultural ferment of the late Roman empire. Augustine experienced what Latino/a theology calls mestizaje, which means being of a mixed background. Cuban American historian and theologian Justo Gonzalez looks at the life and legacy of Augustine from the perspective of his own Latino heritage and finds in the bishop of Hippo a remarkable resource for the church today. The mestizo Augustine can serve as a lens by which to see afresh not only the history of Christianity but also our own culturally diverse world.

Die Colloquia Raurica werden alle zwei Jahre vom CollegiumRauricum veranstaltet. Sie finden auf Castelen, dem Landgut der Roemer-Stiftung Dr. Rene Clavel in Augst (Augusta Raurica) bei Basel, statt. Jedes Colloquium behandelt eine aktuelle geisteswissenschaftliche Frage von allgemeinem Interesse aus der Perspektiveverschiedener Disziplinen. Einen Schwerpunkt bilden dabei Beitrage aus dem Bereich der Altertumswissenschaft. Um moeglichst vielseitig abgestutzte Erkenntnisse zu gewinnen, eroertern die eingeladenen Fachvertreter das Tagungsthema im gemeinsamen Gesprach. Die Ergebnissedes Colloquiumwerden in der Schriftenreihe Colloquia Raurica publiziert.

Valerius Maximus was an indefatigable collector of historical anecdotes illustrating vice and virtue. His Memorable Deeds and Sayings are unparalleled as a source for the opinions of Romans in the early empire on a vast range of subjects.
Mueller focuses on what Valerius can tell us about contemporary Roman attitudes to religion, attacking several orthodoxies along the way. He argues that Roman religion could be deeply emotional. That it was possible to believe passionately in the divinity of the emperor - even when, like Tiberius, he was still alive - and that Rome's gods and religious rituals had an important role in fostering conventional morality.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203463269

Discover the traditional stories and wisdom behind your favourite yoga poses in this stunningly illustrated book of Indian mythology for yogis of all levels. A beautifully written introduction to Indian mythology, join storyteller, scholar and teacher, Dr Raj Balkaran, and explore the unforgettable tales behind 50 key yoga poses, such as: Virabhadrasana II, the original warrior pose Tadasana, mountain pose Bhujangasana, cobra pose Garudasana, eagle pose Padmasana, lotus pose Virasana, hero pose Savasana, corpse pose Meet iconic Gods and Goddesses, from Ganesa, the elephant-headed god of wisdom, to Siva, Lord of Yogis, and Kali, goddess of mind, body, soul and death. Explore the rivalry between the sages Vasistha and Visvamitra, and their cosmic feud over a wish-fulfilling cow. Plunge into the depths of one of the richest myths in Hinduism: the battle between the demons and the gods who churn the cosmic oceans in search for the elixir of immortality. And learn how Siva got his blue throat! Learn, through the mythology of the poses, more about the roots of this ancient practice and how you can use their teachings to better appreciate and respect yoga's true origins. Enhance your practice by reading one story before or at the end of class, and incorporating the poses and their teaching into your life, as well as your yoga practice, and transform the way you view and practice this timeless art.

The Naked Goddess can take on various forms: mistress of animals, seductress, fertility figure, even monster. Nudity, however, has a consistent message: power.
This book explores the power of naked females in the art of the Levant and Early Greece, tracing the path and transformation of these magical symbols from their place of origin to Crete and the mainland.
The Goddess and the Warrior presents a stimulating, provocative and lavishly illustrated analysis of the role of the naked goddess and the mistress of the animals within Greek religion.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203462858

This title explores the causes of evil in myth, encompassing themes such as defilement, the figure of the trickster, evil people both within and outside the society, and traumatic initiations. Evil, an undeniable yet inexplicable force in human existence, is often defined as that which ought not to be, yet is - so it must be destroyed, or contained, or lived with. Myths of evil function to universalize the human condition, to show the tension between the ideal and the real, to reveal but not allegorize that condition, and to go some way to assist humanity in understanding, combating and coping with evil within its societies. "Tales of Darkness" explores the causes of evil in myth, encompassing themes such as defilement, the figure of the trickster, evil people both within and outside the society, and traumatic initiations. Robert Ellwood then looks at 'cures' for evil: laughter, sacrifice, the flood, the hero's quest, initiation, the saviour, divine wisdom and the end of days. This is a fascinating examination of how people have dealt with evil, not philosophically but in terms of the myths, ancient and modern, which present stories convergent with our own, from creation myths to Star Wars.

Contents:
1. Introduction, Deities and their Worshippers, 2. The Gamos of Hera: Myth and Ritual, Isabelle Clark, 3. Domesticating Artemis, Susan Cole, Objects of Worship, 4. Marriage and the Maiden: Narratives on the Parthenon, Sue Blundell, 5. Born Old or Never Young? Femininity, Childhood and the Goddesses of Ancient Greece, Lesley Beaumont, 6. The Nature of Heroines, Emily Kearns, Ritual and Gender, 7. Death Becomes Her: Gender and Athenian Death Ritual, Karen Stears, 8. In the Mirror of Dionysus, Richard Seaford, Sources and Interpreters, 9. Thesmophoria and Haloa: Myth, Physics and Mysteries, Nick Lowe