Sylvia Marcos – författare

This book examines the critical and often undervalued contributions of women to the culture, well-being, and subsistence of their communities as active, powerful, and wise ritual specialists.From the Dalit midwives in India to the women of the Nahua region in the state of Morelos, Mexico, from the indigenous nations in Turtle Island in Canada to the shamans (male and female) of South Korea and Vietnam, there are still many vital indigenous cultures around the world in which women often hold positions of religious authority and leadership.Women and Indigenous Religions addresses specific issues in the study of religion, such as the multifaceted tensions between indigenous traditions and gender and the genealogy of positions of authority in religion or spiritual matters. A close examination reveals that native religions, with their women specialists, are still a source of inspiration for millions of men and women even in the "advanced" areas in the world. This fact challenges the opinion that indigenous cultures are becoming extinct.

This book examines the critical and often undervalued contributions of women to the culture, well-being, and subsistence of their communities as active, powerful, and wise ritual specialists.From the Dalit midwives in India to the women of the Nahua region in the state of Morelos, Mexico, from the indigenous nations in Turtle Island in Canada to the shamans (male and female) of South Korea and Vietnam, there are still many vital indigenous cultures around the world in which women often hold positions of religious authority and leadership.Women and Indigenous Religions addresses specific issues in the study of religion, such as the multifaceted tensions between indigenous traditions and gender and the genealogy of positions of authority in religion or spiritual matters. A close examination reveals that native religions, with their women specialists, are still a source of inspiration for millions of men and women even in the "advanced" areas in the world. This fact challenges the opinion that indigenous cultures are becoming extinct.

This volume deals with the world of women in Mesoamerica, discussing particularly the religious and ritual aspects of gender. As its sources, it uses colonial documents of the contact period with European cultures, testimonies of the subjugated indigenous during the colonial period , as well as contemporary ethnographic studies The book starts with an analysis of healing rituals in contemporary Mexico , focusing on the "e;refunctionalization"e; of ancient beliefs and practices.From there it moves spiral-like between pre-hispanic and colonial pasts and diverse presents. The section on "e;orality"e; is a methodological proposal for the study of indigenous religious traditions.The book is illustrated with reproductions of ancient codices.

Los ensayos que contiene este libro se mueven en diferentes tiempos, en forma semejante a una espiral que siempre regresa a varias versiones del pasado visto siempre en nuevas perspectivas, un poco diferente aquí pero siempre reconocible, evidentemente modernizado allá, pero sin perder nunca su referencia al movimiento de tiempo cíclico que es propio de las culturas mesoamericanas. Este libro es también la historia de una larga jornada intelectual que partió del tenaz cuestionamiento de una joven mexicana acerca de la posición históricamente subordinada y servil de las mujeres en su sociedad. Pasé muchos años investigando en la maravillosa biblioteca de Ivan Illich. Sobre una colina desde la cual se domina el Valle de Cuernavaca, Illich había creado el Centro Intercultural de Documentación (CIDOC).