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The answers to countless intriguing questions (How did the custom of kissing begin? Was there really a female pope?) are given in this compulsively readable, feminist encyclopedia. Twenty-five years in preparation, this unique, comprehensive sourcebook focuses on mythology, anthropology, religion, & sexuality to uncover precisely what other encyclopedias leave out or misrepresent. This book presents the fascinating stories behind word origins, legends, superstitions, & customs. A browser?s delight & an indispensable resource, it offers 1,350 entries on magic, witchcraft, fairies, elves, giants, goddesses, gods, & psychological anomalies such as demonic possession; the mystical meanings of sun, moon, earth, sea, time, & space; ideas of the soul, reincarnation, creation & doomsday; ancient & modern attitudes toward sex, prostitution, romance, rape, warfare, death & sin, and more. Tracing these concepts to their patriarchal origins, the author explores a "thousand hidden pockets of history & custom in addition to the valuable material recovered by archaeologists, orientalists, & other scholars." Not only a compendium of fascinating lore & scholarship, this is a revolutionary book that offers a rare opportunity for both women & men to see our cultural heritage in a fresh light, & draw upon the past for a more humane future. Paperback, 1,121 pages.
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