Thesis (M.A.)--Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, 1997. / Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 2835. Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 92-98).

Thesis (M.A.)--Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 1995. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 96-100).

Thesis--Berlin. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 216-233).

La présente étude s’intéresse aux popula-tions installées en Irlande avant l’arrivée du christianisme (aux environs du Ve siècle de notre ère), et plus précisément aux bâtisseurs des tombes à couloirs du Néolithique ainsi qu’aux Celtes. L’omniprésence d’une com-posante féminine symbolique dans les pay-sages pré-chrétiens (qu’ils soient naturels, mégalithiques ou littéraires) est au centre de cette analyse, qui prend en considération le caractère matrifocal des sociétés archaïques et en évalue l’impact sociétal et rituel chez les Celtes. La thèse examine la spécificité de la perception des reliefs et l’expression sym-bolique de la représentation. Cette dernière se traduit chez les populations du Néolithique par une féminisation du paysage au travers des modifications délibérées de lieux naturels ou la création de sites clefs (tels que Brú na Bóinne ou Loughcrew). Nous montrons aussi que cette perception de l’espace comme fé-minin fut relayée chez les Celtes par la créa-tion de mythes mettant en scène des figures féminines divines ou évhémérisées transfonc-tionnelles. Le rapprochement proposé entre les créa-tions de ces deux groupes humains distants de plusieurs millénaires (de - 3500 à 700) vise à montrer qu’il existe dans les deux cas conception similaire de la terre d’Irlande comme féminine. Pour ce faire, la thèse met en relation plusieurs disciplines. La confron-tation des documents archéo-mythologiques révèle une continuité chronologique dans les représentations qui est liée à l’assimilation de l’héritage culturel indigène par les Celtes venus du continent. Nous avançons l’idée que l’osmose entre ces deux cultures a donné naissance à une identité celte insulaire unique, fortement ancrée dans la terre d’Irlande. / This study deals with the peoples who settled in Ireland before the coming of Chris-tianity (around the 5th century C.E.), and more precisely with both the builders of pas-sage tombs dating from the Neolithic period and the Celts. The analysis revolves around the omnipresence of a symbolical feminine element in pre-Christian landscapes (be they natural, megalithic or literary) and takes into account the matrifocal nature of these ancient communities, assessing its impact on Celtic societies and rituals. A specific apprehension of the natural features and its symbolic repre-sentation will be examined here. The latter is expressed by the Neolithic peoples through feminine sexual attributes they deliberately added to natural places or through the promi-nent sites they built (such as Brú na Bóinne or Loughcrew). It will also be shown that such a feminine perception of the Irish land-scape was taken up by the Celts, who created myths involving transfunctional or euhemer-ised goddess figures. Bringing together the creations of these two peoples separated by several millennia (from 3,500 B.C.E. to 700 C.E.) aims at showing that they shared a similar feminine vision of Ireland. To do so, several fields will be considered. Confronting archaeo-mythological documents will highlight actual chronological consistency in representation. This is linked to the continental Celts’ assim-ilation of the indigenous cultural heritage. We believe that the blending of these two cultures led to a unique insular Celtic identity which is deeply rooted in the land of Éire.

This MA thesis deals with the topic of the cult of Mother Goddesses in Vietnam with special reference to South Vietnam. The subject is discussed from the point of view of cultural anthropology and special attention is paid to some specific aspects, which differentiate this popular belief from other religions. The cult of Mother Goddesses is characterised in greater detail on the basis of certain hypotheses and is viewed through the prism of various ethnologically oriented paradigms. The first part of the work describes the development of this cult, its Vietnamese specifics and its position in the context of the local religious milieu. Furthermore, the work discusses the characters of the individual Mother Goddesses and the collected theoretical knowledge is compared with the results of empirical research. On the background of the example of Mother Goddess Bà Chúa Xứ, the work elucidates certain topics, which are related to the cult of Mother Goddesses, but are considerably differentiated regionally. It is therefore necessary to present these aspects by way of concrete examples and to see them in the cultural-historical context. The second part of the work is based especially on the analyses of the results of the field research and it attempts to clarify the extent of the public knowledge about this...

楊莉. / 論文(博士)--香港中文大學, 2000. / 參考文獻 (p. 138-142) / 中英文摘要. / Available also through the Internet via Dissertations & theses @ Chinese University of Hong Kong. / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest Information and Learning Company, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / Yang Li. / Lun wen (bo shi)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 2000. / Can kao wen xian (p. 138-142) / Zhong Ying wen zhai yao.

The thesis concerns representations of Roman women of the imperial period depicted in the guise of a divinity. Portraits of women of all social levels have been included as have representations in any media excluding numismatic evidence. The latter, with its specific contextual characteristics, is only included and discussed as comparanda for the main body of material. The juxtaposition of a recognisable reality and a heightened reality in these representations raises a variety of interpretative questions: whether it is possible to establish a correlation between the mythological interpretation of a goddess and the socio-personal interpretation of an image of a mortal woman; the nature of the message being communicated through the choice of a particular deity; and whether the choice of deity for association in some way may be seen to conform to established ideals or topoi for women. The work examines Roman portraiture as a vehicle for self-expression and the transmission of ideals. Various aspects of the 'mechanics' for achieving this (idealisation, imitation, etc.) are investigated. Though, of particular importance to the argument is the relationship between image and spectator: the perception of portraits and the various factors contributing to forming an interpretation. Thus portraiture is established as a medium which within its contextual framework also includes the spectator - and the spectator's cultural reference points. The main body of the thesis centres on a dual examination of the range of deities with which Roman women were associated and the women presented in the divine guises, respectively proposing avenues of interpretations for the divine allusions and offering suggestions for methods of interpreting their use. The examination of the various deities in whose guises Roman women appear is also juxtaposed with the distinctions and attributes used to characterise women in literary and epigraphic sources. The correlation between these helps to elucidate the values represented in the images of women under discussion, and how they fit within a framework of ideals and virtues, and with the social personae of Roman women. Similarly, affinities between social status and mythological depiction are juxtaposed with a discussion of the role of the mythological representations themselves - exploring especially the relationship between mythological narrative and the tradition of exempla in Roman literature. It is further argued that interpretation is influenced also by viewer response - encouraged through empathetic identification and social emulation - and that the images of women in divine guises therefore may be perceived both as revealing intrinsic personal characteristics and as a costume symbolically articulating aspirational values. The inherent duality in these representations does in other words not so much concern degrees of reality as interacting realities: the individual"as a social participant, the public persona evidencing personal virtues. The images of Roman women presented therefore contain equally a reconfiguring response to the world and a socialising affirmation of identity.

The temple of the Goddess Kamakhya in Assam is the pre-eminent site of Hindu Goddess worship. It is revered as the yoni pītha, the place where the generative organ of the Goddess is worshipped. This thesis, centred on Kamakhya, explores the Hindu tradition of Goddess worship, Saktism, and both the possibilities and contradictions it presents for women. The research was undertaken from a feminist standpoint and employed a framework that was collaborative, cross-cultural and inter-disciplinary. Six women co-researchers from India, the U.S. and Australia took part in a pilgrimage that simultaneously explored the Kamakhya site, its history, symbols, myths and customs, alongside our own personal understandings of Saktism and its role in women’s spiritual empowerment. Our aim, in the face of contradictory evidence about the impact of Goddess traditions on the status of Hindu women, was to try to bridge cultural differences of interpretation and develop feminist readings of what may be enabling for women. The thesis establishes the basis of our collective fascination with Sakti, which denotes both the Goddess and the cosmic power she personifies. Through a combination of narrative, exposition of Indian sources and critical cultural analysis, I present our deliberations on the rich tapestry of themes we encountered. From the outset the thesis problematises the cross-cultural encounter and continues this frame throughout. The voices of the principal co-researchers emerge as they co-constitute the research, its methods and its implementation. Their central role is confirmed as the inquiry proceeds. Following the path of my preliminary encounters with the Goddess and with the co-researchers, pilgrimage is established as a traditional means of encountering the Goddess and, in the form we constructed, as a key experiential dimension of the research. In the encounter with Kamakhya, her dual persona as Mother Goddess and Goddess of Love is elaborated. The meanings and origins of both these aspects, their integration through the concept of srsti cosmic creation, and the implications for women of their associated practices of worship are explored at length. Finally, in light of the pilgrimage, I re-consider conjunctions between Saktism, feminist perspectives on women’s empowerment and theological horizons. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Tārā is arguably the most popular goddess of the Tibetan Buddhist pantheon. She is well known in her Green, White, and Twenty-one forms. However, the numerous red aspects of the divinity have long been overlooked in both popular and academic literature on the goddess. This thesis aims to redress this balance. This thesis presents the various manifestations of Red Tārā in the form of a survey of the literary and practice lineages of this goddess throughout Tibetan Buddhist history. The intention of the thesis is to examine individual forms of Red Tārā, excluding Kurukullā (who has received previous scholarly attention), in order to prove the hypothesis that not all Red Tārās are Kurukullā. The research has identified a preliminary historical order of Red Tārā lineages from the eleventh century works on Pītheśvarī and the Sa-skya-pa Red Tārās, through to the nineteenth and twentieth century forms of the goddess authored by the dGe-lugs-pas and A-paṃ gter-ston in the A-mdo region of Tibet. The red forms of Tārā are more 'worldly' than her Green or White incarnations, and the soteriological component of her worship is not always clear. Accordingly this allows a glimpse into the subjugating/ magnetising ritual process. The thesis comprises three sections. Section One provides a general introduction to Tārā and Kurukullā, followed by a survey of the literature pertaining to Red Tārā identified in the course of this research. Section Two takes four lineages of Red Tārā literature as its focus. Each chapter refers to an individual lineage: Pītheśvarī, Sa-skya-pa, the Twenty-one Tārās, and A-paṃ gter-ton's gter-ma cycle. Section Three deals with modern-day practice of the goddess in the Chagdud Gonpa Foundation and the Flaming Jewel Sangha. The thesis relies on translation of primary sources from the Tibetan language, participant observation, and New Religious Studies methodology, and covers a wide range of areas including subjugation rituals, iconography, body-maṇḍala rituals, the adoption of Buddhism in the West, and New Religious Movements. It adds to current knowledge in a variety of fields including ritual, goddess studies, the Tibetan pantheon and its iconography, and Buddhism in the West.

This is a study of the development of the myth of the White Goddess in the work of Robert Graves, a subject related to the wider field of the place of myth in modern culture. It begins by looking at the conditions which promoted Graves' interest in myth, principally his experience of the Great War. The responses of other writers are examined to provide a context for understanding Graves' transition from Georgianism to myth, as reflected in his early poetry, autobiography and writings on psychology. Before looking at how Graves' myth was formed, the history of the concept of myth is examined, from primitive peoples to civilized religion. Focus is centred upon the dual tendency of myth to reinforce and to undermine authority. Some of the figures behind Graves' interest in myth and anthropology are subject to scrutiny. An account of the relations between myth, literature and psychology permits the survey of Graves' gradual transition from psychological theory to mythographic speculation. The gradual emergence in his poetry of devotion to a Love Goddess can also be traced. Detailed interpretation of The White Goddess, its arguments and procedures, brings to light Graves' theories of the single poetic theme and the primitive matriarchy, both of which can then be evaluated and set in the context of his dedication to non-rational forms of thought. This leads into a close reading of Graves' major mythological poems, followed by reflections upon the myth's application in his critical writings and cultural commentaries. Finally, consideration is given to Graves' later writings, especially his attraction to Orphism and the adoption of mythic personae in his verse. The influence of the Black Goddess of Wisdom over these later works is interpreted and assessed.