The resurgence of the feminine


Book Description

Within a society in which rational analysis and technology have been greatly developed, but which has not known how to translate its material wealth into emotional and spiritual wellbeing, the resurgence of the feminine is ever more necessary, essential and unavoidable. This book is a call and guide for healing and for developing consciousness, of both women and men. It offers tools to integrate feminine values, as well as to humanize our relationships with ourselves, the rest of society and with the environment. It is about waking up to your own true power and your true nature, beyond social and gender conditioning. It is an invitation to go within in order to be in contact with our Divine Human Potential, develop it and then express and externalize it, healing in this way our life and our relationship with Mother Earth. In this voyage of initiation, and as we overcome the repression of the feminine, we dare to explore our most human dimensions, as well as enter into contact with our most vulnerable sides, turning them into allies and true strength. The Resurgence of the Feminine contains an article by Leonard Orr, founder of Rebirthing Breathwork, and a prologue written by Vandana Shiva.




The Monstrous-Feminine


Book Description

In almost all critical writings on the horror film, woman is conceptualised only as victim. In The Monstrous-Feminine Barbara Creed challenges this patriarchal view by arguing that the prototype of all definitions of the monstrous is the female reproductive body.With close reference to a number of classic horror films including the Alien trilogy, T




Leftover Women


Book Description

‘Scattered with inspiring life-stories of courageous women.’ The Guardian In the early years of the People’s Republic, the Communist Party sought to transform gender relations. Yet those gains have been steadily eroded in China’s post-socialist era. Contrary to the image presented by China’s media, women in China have experienced a dramatic rollback of rights and gains relative to men. In Leftover Women, Leta Hong Fincher exposes shocking levels of structural discrimination against women, and the broader damage this has caused to China’s economy, politics, and development.




Psychedelic Mysteries of the Feminine


Book Description

An exploration of the connections between feminine consciousness and altered states from ancient times to present day • Explores the feminine qualities of the psychedelic self, ancient female roots of shamanism, and how altered states naturally tap into the female archetype • Discusses feminist psychedelic activism, female ecstatics, goddess consciousness, the dark feminine, and embodied paths to ecstasy • Includes contributions by Martina Hoffmann, Amanda Sage, Carl Ruck, and others Women have been shamans since time immemorial, not only because women have innate intuitive gifts, but also because the female body is wired to more easily experience altered states, such as during the process of birth. Whether female or male, the altered states produced by psychedelics and ecstatic trance expand our minds to tap into and enhance our feminine states of consciousness as well as reconnect us to the web of life. In this book, we discover the transformative powers of feminine consciousness and altered states as revealed by contributors both female and male, including revered scholars, visionary artists, anthropologists, modern shamans, witches, psychotherapists, and policy makers. The book begins with a deep look at the archetypal dimensions of the feminine principle and how entheogens give us open access to these ancient archetypes, including goddess consciousness and the dark feminine. The contributors examine the female roots of shamanism, including the role of women in the ancient rites of Dionysus, the Eleusinian Sacrament, and Norse witchcraft. They explore psychedelic and embodied paths to ecstasy, such as trance dance, holotropic breathwork, and the similarities of giving birth and taking mind-altering drugs. Looking at the healing potential of the feminine and altered states, they discuss the power of plant medicines, including ayahuasca, and the recasting of the medicine-woman archetype for the modern world. They explore the feminine in the creative process and discuss feminist psychedelic activism, sounding the call for more female voices in the psychedelic research community. Sharing the power of “femtheogenic” wisdom to help us move beyond a patriarchal society, this book reveals how feminine consciousness, when intermingled with psychedelic knowledge, carries and imparts the essence of inclusivity, interconnectedness, and balance our world needs to heal and consciously evolve.




Fierce Feminine Rising


Book Description

A guide for embodying the courage of the Fierce Feminine, or Dark Mother, to heal yourself and the world at large • Describes how to embody the sacred rage of the Fierce Feminine and channel the universal outrage collectively rising in many of us to seek justice for those who can’t defend themselves • Details constructive energetic and spiritual practices to help heal from predatory relationships and traumatic experiences, recenter your personal power, and gain control of your sacred rage rather than allowing it to control you • Explains how to gain access to primordial female wisdom within the brain, embrace your inner Kali, and personally deal with sorrow and anger • Includes access to online audio tracks After millennia of suppression, the Fierce Feminine, or Dark Mother, is making a dramatic resurgence to express our universal outrage. She is rising collectively now, and many women--and men--are feeling a welling up of sacred rage inside, a calling to set things right in our own lives and seek justice for those who can’t defend themselves. Offering much-needed perspective, advice, and tools for channeling the righteous energy and sacred rage of the Divine Feminine, Anaiya Sophia explains how to distinguish the Fierce Feminine from personal anger and reveals how it is not a feminist movement set to publicly condemn all that is masculine but a collective spiritual uprising for the greater good of humanity. She shares constructive practices drawn from Eastern tradition to help you embody the courage of the Fierce Feminine to heal from predatory relationships and traumatic experiences, recenter your personal power, and gain control of your sacred rage rather than allowing it to control you. She details sacred sexuality exercises, including those with a yoni egg to clear the womb after lovemaking and dispel any energetic imprint left by an ex-partner. She provides instructions to gain access to the primordial wisdom within the untapped portion of the female brain, embrace your inner Kali, and personally deal with sorrow and anger. Through this passionate step-by-step guide to comfort your spiritual anguish and dispel the helplessness of not knowing what to do, Anaiya Sophia encourages those who feel the call of the Fierce Feminine to embrace their sacred mission and allow it to rebalance the powers that govern the planet as well as harmonize our minds. When we allow the justice of the Fierce Feminine to flow within us, we each become an active participant in the embodiment of change.




Divine Feminine


Book Description

Honorable Mention for the Wallace K. Ferguson Prize from the Canadian Historical AssociationChosen by Choice Magazine as an Outstanding Academic Title of 2003 In 1891, newspapers all over the world carried reports of the death of H. P. Blavatsky, the mysterious Russian woman who was the spiritual founder of the Theosophical Society. With the help of the equally mysterious Mahatmas who were her teachers, Blavatsky claimed to have brought the "ancient wisdom of the East" to the rescue of a materialistic West. In England, Blavatsky's earliest followers were mostly men, but a generation later the Theosophical Society was dominated by women, and theosophy had become a crucial part of feminist political culture. Divine Feminine is the first full-length study of the relationship between alternative or esoteric spirituality and the feminist movement in England. Historian Joy Dixon examines the Theosophical Society's claims that women and the East were the repositories of spiritual forces which English men had forfeited in their scramble for material and imperial power. Theosophists produced arguments that became key tools in many feminist campaigns. Many women of the Theosophical Society became suffragists to promote the spiritualizing of politics, attempting to create a political role for women as a way to "sacralize the public sphere." Dixon also shows that theosophy provides much of the framework and the vocabulary for today's New Age movement. Many of the assumptions about class, race, and gender which marked the emergence of esoteric religions at the end of the nineteenth century continue to shape alternative spiritualities today.




On the Wings of Shekhinah


Book Description

One effect of rising interest in the Kabbalah is a renewed focus on the Shekhinah, Judaism's divine feminine principle. Written with warmth and clarity, On the Wings of Shekhinah interweaves historical views of this concept with thoughtful quotes and guided meditations. Rabbi Leah Novick offers healing strategies for both Jews and non-Jews disaffected by rigid gender roles. Awareness of the Shekhinah’s energy within and around us helps bring hope to a planet afflicted by war, violence, and environmental abuse — this book shows how to find and use that energy.




Goddesses for Every Day


Book Description

Throughout time, people have turned to goddesses as symbols of what they seek -- from abundance to healing, from protection to passion. Building on the resurgence of interest in the Divine Feminine, Julie Loar presents the qualities and origins of an international array of these deities, along with powerful suggestions for putting their attributes to practical use. In a daily-reflection format, she gracefully aligns the goddesses with the cycles of nature and the signs of the zodiac. If you are struggling to attain a goal, call on the Nepalese goddess Chomolungma, as the sherpas climbing Mount Everest have done for generations. Or, for good luck, invoke the Roman goddess Fortuna, the inspiration behind gambling's wheel of fortune. With 366 goddesses to choose from, you will find a deity to call upon for every aspiration and need.




Soul Power


Book Description

Now is a pivotal time. There is an opportunity to engage the whole of humanity in an evolutionary advance, if only we can understand whatâs happening and why. This book helps us do just that. Our brilliant technological culture inflicts intolerable stress on us because it grants no value to feelings and allows no time for relationship with the soul. Through a combination of exquisite images and wise words, this book enables us to understand the root causes of humanityâs current crises, which lie in the loss of connection with the soul and its vast power. The book shows what is needed for change to happen at a profound level, and how we can use the power lying dormant within us to serve the planet. It concludes with a practical section on what needs to be done, and how it can be done, by any and every one. In short, it offers a clear agenda for a conscious humanity. Can a book enchant, inspire and instruct at the same time â and in less than 10,000 words? This one does.




Damned Women


Book Description

In her analysis of the cultural construction of gender in early America, Elizabeth Reis explores the intersection of Puritan theology, Puritan evaluations of womanhood, and the Salem witchcraft episodes. She finds in those intersections the basis for understanding why women were accused of witchcraft more often than men, why they confessed more often, and why they frequently accused other women of being witches. In negotiating their beliefs about the devil's powers, both women and men embedded womanhood in the discourse of depravity.Puritan ministers insisted that women and men were equal in the sight of God, with both sexes equally capable of cleaving to Christ or to the devil. Nevertheless, Reis explains, womanhood and evil were inextricably linked in the minds and hearts of seventeenth-century New England Puritans. Women and men feared hell equally but Puritan culture encouraged women to believe it was their vile natures that would take them there rather than the particular sins they might have committed.Following the Salem witchcraft trials, Reis argues, Puritans' understanding of sin and the devil changed. Ministers and laity conceived of a Satan who tempted sinners and presided physically over hell, rather than one who possessed souls in the living world. Women and men became increasingly confident of their redemption, although women more than men continued to imagine themselves as essentially corrupt, even after the Great Awakening.