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Throughout Western memory the apple has been the fruit of trouble, immortality, and temptation: Paris and the Trojan War, Nordic Loki and the apples of eternal life, and, of course, that infamous couple in the Garden.
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 and insects. Each chapter covers one significant grouping (such as dogs, cats or horses), first describing an animal scientifically and then detailing the mythological attributes. Numerous examples cite texts or myths. A final section covers animal hybrids, animal monsters and mythical animals as well as stars, constellations and Zodiac symbols. An appendix describes basic details of the religions and mythologies covered. A glossary defines uncommon religious terms and explains scientific animal names.
Every person has seen a tree and maybe planted or climbed one! In all world religions, various trees are considered sacred. Trees have the ability to help us reach wholeness if we learn their wisdom and integrate it into our lives. This abecedarian--a book whose contents are in alphabetical order--explores the spiritual growth that is possible by reflecting on the wisdom of woody plants, which help humans experience the divine. In these pages you can explore trees from Acacia to Zaqqum. For each of the forty entries, the author presents a text identifying the tree, a reflective study, a question for journaling or personal meditation, and a concluding prayer. Some trees you may have heard about, and some may be new to you. The spiritual life is enhanced by the trees that surround and share the earth with us while also disclosing the divine to us.
"In his life and writing, Michael Yankoski walks a tightrope between action and contemplation, and, behold, in ways we can all learn from, he manages to find a sort of essential balance." —Philip Yancey, author of What's So Amazing About Grace "This book is a joy to the soul and a delight to the heart. It is destined to become a classic within the genre of contemporary spiritual and religious writing." —Phyllis Tickle, compiler of The Divine Hours Frustrated and disillusioned with his life as a Christian motivational speaker, Michael Yankoski was determined to stop merely talking about living a life of faith and start experiencing it. The result was a year of focused engagement with spiritual practices—both ancient and modern—that fundamentally reshaped and revived his life. By contemplating apples for an hour before tasting them (attentiveness), eating on just $2.00 a day (simplicity), or writing letters of thanks (gratitude), Michael discovered a whole new vitality and depth through the intentional life. Guided by the voice of Father Solomon—a local monk—Yankoski's Sacred Year slowly transforms his life. Both entertaining and profound, his story will resonate with those who wish to deepen their own committed faith as well as those who are searching—perhaps for the first time—for their own authentic encounter with the Divine.
Comparison is an indispensable intellectual operation that plays a crucial role in the formation of knowledge. Yet comparison often leads us to forego attention to nuance, detail, and context, perhaps leaving us bereft of an ethical obligation to take things correspondingly as they are. Examining the practice of comparison across the study of history, language, religion, and culture, distinguished scholar of religion Bruce Lincoln argues in Apples and Oranges for a comparatism of a more modest sort. Lincoln presents critiques of recent attempts at grand comparison, and enlists numerous theoretical examples of how a more modest, cautious, and discriminating form of comparison might work and what it can accomplish. He does this through studies of shamans, werewolves, human sacrifices, apocalyptic prophecies, sacred kings, and surveys of materials as diverse and wide-ranging as Beowulf, Herodotus’s account of the Scythians, the Native American Ghost Dance, and the Spanish Civil War. Ultimately, Lincoln argues that concentrating one's focus on a relatively small number of items that the researcher can compare closely, offering equal attention to relations of similarity and difference, not only grants dignity to all parties considered, it yields more reliable and more interesting—if less grandiose—results. Giving equal attention to the social, historical, and political contexts and subtexts of religious and literary texts also allows scholars not just to assess their content, but also to understand the forces, problems, and circumstances that motivated and shaped them.
More than five hundred years after the fact, present-day writers still use hyperbolic adjectives to describe the “discovery” of the Americas. Columbus’s crossing of the Atlantic—and the age of exploration that ensued—dramatically and forever changed the early modern world. The societies, economies, cultures, arts, and burgeoning sciences of Europe were quickly transformed by the ongoing encounter with the New World. The meeting of the New and the Old Worlds, however, was more than a meeting of disparate civilizations. It was also a confluence of exciting and often surprising associations that continually created new interfaces between materials and knowledge. The Western and Eastern Hemispheres, brought together by sailing ships for the first time on a large scale, helped create the global landscape we take for granted today. Central to this formative moment in global history were New World plants. The agriculture of indigenous peoples mythically and materially shaped English society and, subsequently, its literature in new and startling ways. Sacred Seeds examines New World plants—tobacco, amaranth, guaiacum, and the prickly pear cactus—and their associated Native myths as they moved across the Atlantic and into English literature. Edward McLean Test reinstates the contributions of indigenous peoples to European society, charting an alternative cultural history that explores the associations and assemblages of transatlantic multiplicity rather than Eurocentric homogeny.
Paperback edition of the number one best-seller that made Bill Cullen a household name. The Bill Cullen story is an account of incredible poverty and deprivation in the Dublin slums. It highlights the frustration of a mother and father feeling their relationship crumble as they fight to give their children a better life. It's a story of courage, joy and happiness. Of how a mother gave inspiration and values to her children saying, 'The best thing I can give you is the independence to stand on your own feet'.
Now in paperback! Following the category-dominating success of Witchery, indigenous medicine woman and seer Juliet Diaz initiates readers following the current witchy trends of herbal medicine and magic into a deeper, wilder connection with the ancient healing power of over 200 plants. All it will take is for you to slow down and pay attention to the world around you and, I promise, you will find the world within you. Indigenous seer, gifted plant whisperer, and Witchery author Juliet Diaz invites you to walk the path of the Plant Witch. Journey far beyond the basic medicinal and magical properties of plants, deep into Mother Earth's drumming heart. Drawn from ancestral practices passed down by generations of teachers, the lessons in this book will awaken your intimate connection with nature, your ancestors, your guides, and to your true self through the powerful magic of plants. Within these pages, you will learn: Essential, magical, and medicinal properties of 200 herbs, flowers, trees, and fruits. Rituals for abundance, cleansing, and connecting with spirits. Spells to ward against evil, find answers, and protect against self-sabotage. Potions to open your third eye, bring luck, and promote creativity. Communication techniques for speaking and listening to plants. The optimal moon phases and seasons to work with different plants. Even as humans forget our place in nature's rhythm and cause harm to our Earth Mother, the spirits of plants still call out to us, appear in our dreams, and inspire us as they push through cracks in cement-resilient and determined to thrive. From abre camino and acacia to yucca and ZZ plant, each has unique personality and wisdom to share if we are only willing to listen.