This is a rare exciting inside story of worship in a small Indian matriarchal village formed around a Kali temple. Bhairavan writes of initiation into the world of Kali's odiyyas: shamans of the goddess, following Shambu and Sandhya from initiation, through an exorcism, and an initiation into mystical sexuality. Kundalini arousal, karma, a funeral celebration, the matriarchal transference of power following the search for spirituality, the sorcerers who shape-shift into the astral world, where Shambu experiences his astral form as a being of light, are interspersed with the wise words of Aunt Preema, the sorceress-teacher. We learn what it means to be a devotee, how Kali followers view sexuality and mores, the day-to-day lifestyle in this holy village, and how the shamanic community takes care of the needs of the people. Never before have these secrets been revealed!

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A Breakthrough in Healing, Forgiveness and Reconciliation Between Men and Women I have been looking a long time to find a way to bring healing and reconciliation between women and men here in South Africa. This work is the answer. We need much more of this work in South Africa. – Nozizwe Madlala Routledge, Deputy Minister of Health and Member of Parliament, South Africa Will Keepin’s pioneering, passionate, deeply thoughtful work has been on the cutting edge for years. Now his book gives us all access to his profound insights and effective methods. This is crucial work. – Andrew Harvey, author of twenty books, including Son of Man and The Direct Path This is the first workshop I have experienced that fully integrates educational and spiritual components in a balanced manner. – Ela Gandhi, founding director of Satyagraha Center, Durban, South Africa; granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi That rarest of books – it challenges and changes your mind, but only after it penetrates your heart. – Peter Rutter, M.D., Jungian psychiatrist, author of Sex in the Forbidden Zone and Understanding and Preventing Sexual Harassment An extraordinary contribution to fostering gender reconciliation ... practical and empowering. – Angeles Arrien, Ph.D., cultural anthropologist, author of The Four-Fold Way and The Second Half of Life [The] profound crisis in relations between men and women in today’s world causes enormous suffering ... Divine Duality is an extraordinary and groundbreaking book ... that holds great promise as a way to its alleviation. – Stanislav Grof, M.D., author of Psychology of the Future and The Ultimate Journey

Psychological Anthropology: A Reader in Self in Culture presents a selection of readings from recent and classical literature with a rich diversity of insights into the individual and society. Presents the latest psychological research from a variety of global cultures Sheds new light on historical continuities in psychological anthropology Explores the cultural relativity of emotional experience and moral concepts among diverse peoples, the Freudian influence and recent psychoanalytic trends in anthropology Addresses childhood and the acquisition of culture, an ethnographic focus on the self as portrayed in ritual and healing, and how psychological anthropology illuminates social change

Encountering Kali explores one of the most ramarkable divinities the world has seen. The Hindu goddess Kali is simultaneously understood as a blood thirsty warrior a deity of ritual possession a tantric sexual partner and an all loving compassionate mothe. Popular and scholarly interest in her has been on the rise in the west in recent years. Responding to this phenomenon McDermott and Kripal`s volume focuses on the complexities involved in interpreting Kali in both her indigenous south Asian settings and her more recent Western incarnation. Through the shifting lenses of scriptural history temple architecture political reflection and the goddess`s recent guises on the Internet the contributors pose questions that illuminate our understanding of Kali while addressing the problems and promises inherent in every act of cross cultural interpretation.

With a literary history spanning centuries, the languages of Odisha have found myriad expression in prose, poetry, mythology, history, and politics. The Big Book of Odia Literature goes where very few have dared—into a history of language, literature and song that can be traced back all the way to the tenth century. In this careful curation, The Big Book curates essays, stories, poems, and plays that have defined the culture of a state and a people. A first of its kind, the volume is for lovers of linguistic history and literary traditions.

A timeless compilation of teachings and Life of Sri Odiya Babaji Maharaj, the paramaguru of Swami Akhandananda Saraswati Ji Maharaj of Vrindavan.