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Informationen zum Autor Sharon Paice MacLeod is a Harvard-trained Celticist, grant-funded researcher, historical consultant and professional musician. She has taught Celtic literature, mythology and folklore at the university level and lives in New England. Klappentext This book provides a comprehensive overview of Celtic mythology and religion, encompassing numerous aspects of ritual and belief. Topics include the presence of the Celtic Otherworld and its inhabitants, cosmology and sacred cycles, wisdom texts, mythological symbolism, folklore and legends, and an appreciation of the natural world. Evidence is drawn from the archaeology of sacred sites, ethnographic accounts of the ancient Celts and their beliefs, medieval manuscripts, poetic and visionary literature, and early modern accounts of folk healers and seers. New translations of poems, prayers, inscriptions and songs from the early period (Gaulish, Old Irish and Middle Welsh) as well as the folklore tradition (Modern Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Cornish, Breton and Manx) complement the text. Information of this kind has never before been collected as a compendium of the indigenous wisdom of the Celtic-speaking peoples, whose traditions have endured in various forms for almost three thousand years. Zusammenfassung Provides a comprehensive overview of Celtic mythology and religion. Topics covered include the presence of the Celtic Otherworld and its inhabitants! cosmology and sacred cycles! wisdom texts! mythological symbolism! folklore and legends! and an appreciation of the natural world. Inhaltsverzeichnis Table of ContentsPreface Introduction: Journeying to the Well of Wisdom Part One: Celtic Religion and Mythology1. The Sacred Elements of the Tradition 2. Sources of Knowledge 3. Druids, Seers, Poets and Priestesses 4. The Celtic Otherworld 5. The Gods of Britain and Gaul 6. Irish Gods and Goddesses 7. The Ritual Year Part Two: Celtic Shamanism and Wisdom Traditions8. Elements of Celtic Shamanism 9. The Feathered Cloak 10. The Song of the Shaman 11. Celtic Cosmology 12. Celtic Wisdom Traditions 13. The Knowledge of Trees 14. Symbolism of Animals and Birds Part Three: Celtic Legends and Folklore15. The Wisdom of the Ancestors 16. The Legend of Arthur 17. The Mabinogi 18. Fairies, Healers and Seers 19. Folklore of Spring and Summer 20. Folklore of Autumn and Winter 21. The Path of the Old Ways Appendix A: The Rights of Women in Early Celtic Culture Appendix B: The Celtic Folksong Tradition Appendix C: Suggested Reading and Further Study Chapter Notes Bibliography Index ...
