Tales of the Plumed Serpent

Tales of the Plumed Serpent PDF Author: Diana Ferguson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 168

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Book Description
"Fascinated by the history and cultures of three highly developed ancient societies--the Mayans, followed by the Aztecs in Mesoamerica and the Incas farther south--Ferguson examines their artifacts and those of the Spanish conquistadors, in relation to the traditions preserved today by their many descendants...Part anthropological study, part history and part folklore... distills a huge amount of information to present a clear, uncluttered and rich resource."--"Publishers Weekly." "Fun, inspiring, educational, and all in all, a great read."--"The New Times."

Tales of the Plumed Serpent

Tales of the Plumed Serpent PDF Author: Diana Ferguson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 168

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Book Description
"Fascinated by the history and cultures of three highly developed ancient societies--the Mayans, followed by the Aztecs in Mesoamerica and the Incas farther south--Ferguson examines their artifacts and those of the Spanish conquistadors, in relation to the traditions preserved today by their many descendants...Part anthropological study, part history and part folklore... distills a huge amount of information to present a clear, uncluttered and rich resource."--"Publishers Weekly." "Fun, inspiring, educational, and all in all, a great read."--"The New Times."

Stalking the Plumed Serpent and Other Adventures in Herpetology

Stalking the Plumed Serpent and Other Adventures in Herpetology PDF Author: D. Bruce Means
Publisher: Pineapple Press
ISBN: 1561646229
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 257

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Book Description
Based on his more than 40 years of field research, Means, an expert on the eastern diamondback rattlesnake, reveals the biological complexity and beauty of the animals he has studied. In Australia, Means searches for the fiercey, reputed to be the worlds deadliest terrestrial snake. In Mexico, he stalks the rattlesnake that might have served as the model for the mythical plumed serpent of Mayan art. In Florida, he is chased by cottonmouth moccasins. Through his experiences, Means hopes that readers will gain a new appreciation for animals called herps, or creepy-crawly things.

Feathered Serpent, Dark Heart of Sky

Feathered Serpent, Dark Heart of Sky PDF Author: David Bowles
Publisher: Cinco Puntos Press
ISBN: 1941026737
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
The stories in Feathered Serpent, Dark Heart of Sky trace the history of the world from its beginnings in the dreams of the dual god, Ometeotl, to the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in Mexico and the fall of the great city Tenochtitlan. In the course of that history we learn about the Creator Twins—Feathered Serpent and Dark Heart of Sky—and how they built the world on a leviathan's back; of the shape-shifting nahualli; and the aluxes, elfish beings known to help out the occasional wanderer. And finally, we read Aztec tales about the arrival of the blonde strangers from across the sea, the strangers who seek to upend the rule of Motecuhzoma and destroy the very stories we are reading. David Bowles stitches together the fragmented mythology of pre-Colombian Mexico into an exciting, unified narrative in the tradition of William Buck's Ramayana, Robert Fagles's Iliad, and Neil Gaiman's Norse Myths. Readers of Norse and Greek mythologies will delight in this rich retelling of stories less explored. Legends and myths captured David Bowles's imagination as a young Latino reader; he was fascinated with epics like the Iliad and the Odyssey. Despite growing up on the United States/Mexico border, he had never read a single Aztec or Mayan myth until he was in college. This experience inspired him to reconnect with that forgotten past. Several of his previous books have incorporated themes from ancient Mexican myths.

Legends of the Plumed Serpent

Legends of the Plumed Serpent PDF Author: Neil Baldwin
Publisher: PublicAffairs
ISBN: 1610392698
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 397

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Book Description
Meticulously pieced together from personal experiences that come with years of travel, an extensive knowledge of the historic and scholarly works, and a deep appreciation of Latin American art and culture—both ancient and modern—critically-acclaimed biographer Neil Baldwin has created a mosaic of words and images retelling the myth of the Plumed Serpent (or Quetzalcóatl) as it has evolved through the millennia. He has also created an essential guidebook for the armchair traveller and passionate tourist alike. Only a few hours by air from the United States are the mysteries and hauntingly beautiful ruins of Mexico. Among the vines intertwined in the frail latticework of crumbling palaces, spiraling geometric motifs covering vast walls that sink beneath the jungle, and nearly vertical temple steps leading hundreds of feet to a dizzying view of sky and earth, images of Quetzalcóatl abound. The fanged, bug-eyed feathered serpent thrusts his malevolent, sneering head from the pyramid at Teotihuacán; he swims in a river of rock around the temple at Xochicalco; and at Chichén Itzá, serpent and jaguar dance on a trail of stone, their embrace spawning a monstrous snake with clawed forefeet. Depicted as part man, snake, and bird, the Plumed Serpent is the earliest known creation myth from Mesoamerica, the region spanning Mexico and most of Central America. He embodies good and evil, sky and earth, feast and famine—the duality of life itself. Steep, massive temples were built in his honor at Teotihuacán, the vast city of ruins near today’s Mexico City, and at Chichén Itzá in northern Yucatán, the intricate complex that includes the famed ballcourt. Moctezuma, the ruler of the Aztecs, mistook Hernán Cortéz and the invasion of the Spanish in 1519 for the return of Quetzalcóatl. The Catholic Church with its army of Franciscan monks adapted his legend to introduce the indigenous people to Catholicism. The myth enhanced Emiliano Zapata’s stature as a latter-day Quetzalcóatl during the Mexican Revolution. Diego Rivera and the modern muralists invoked his image to include indigenous themes in their state-sponsored art. And Quetzalcóatl inspired English author D. H. Lawrence to write a new “American novel.” These and many other tales are recounted in the words and images of Neil Baldwin’s Legends of the Plumed Serpent. Whether sharing a moment of reflection among the breathtaking ruins, delving into the historic role of Quetzalcóatl during the Spanish Conquest, or tracing the themes of revolution and rebirth in the art of Rivera, Orozco, and Siqueiros, Neil Baldwin’s enlightening prose captures the imagination. Accompanied by numerous illustrations—many photographs taken by the author, and others painstakingly researched and gathered over the past decade—Legends of the Plumed Serpent is a true labor of love.

The Popol Vuh

The Popol Vuh PDF Author: Lewis Spence
Publisher: New York : AMS Press
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 80

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Book Description


Mexican Rural Development and the Plumed Serpent

Mexican Rural Development and the Plumed Serpent PDF Author: Betty Bernice Faust
Publisher: Praeger
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description
This is the first ethnography to be written about a Campeche Maya community. It examines the surviving Maya traditional technologies and sacred cosmologies and discusses the potential for combining these with modern knowledge and technologies to form an efficient new system that will not only provide for ecologically responsible development but will also make possible the cultural survival of this threatened indigenous population.

Return of the Plumed Serpent

Return of the Plumed Serpent PDF Author: Graham Hancock
Publisher: Coronet
ISBN: 1444788388
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 544

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Book Description
Graham Hancock, an expert in ancient civilisations and author of the 9 million selling Fingerprints of the Gods, and expert too, on the use of hallucinogens to achieve higher states of consciousness, brings these two interests together in the second volume of the War God trilogy. The conquistador Hernán Cortés is dreaming of Tenochtitlan, the golden city of Aztecs. But in order to win the Aztecs' gold, Cortés and his small force of just five hundred men will have to defeat the psychotic emperor Moctezuma and the armies of hundreds of thousands he commands. Cortés expects that the Tlascalans, hereditary enemies of the Aztecs, will join him, but instead finds himself locked in a deadly struggle. As Cortés risks all against the Tlascalans, he plays mind games with Moctezuma, aiming to defeat the Aztec emperor psychologically before ever having to face him in battle. In this he is aided by his lover Malinal, a beautiful Mayan princess. It is from Malinal that Cortés learns of the myth of Quetzalcoatl, 'The Plumed Serpent'. She shows him how to exploit the prophecy of the fabled god king's return to weaken Moctezuma's resolve and keep alive the suspicion that the conquistador might actually be Quetzalcoatl himself.

Popol Vuh

Popol Vuh PDF Author:
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0684818450
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 388

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Book Description
One of the most extraordinary works of the human imagination and the most important text in the native languages of the Americas, Popul Vuh: The Mayan Book of the Dawn of Life was first made accessible to the public 10 years ago. This new edition retains the quality of the original translation, has been enriched, and includes 20 new illustrations, maps, drawings, and photos.

The Gospel of the Toltecs

The Gospel of the Toltecs PDF Author: Frank Díaz
Publisher: Inner Traditions / Bear & Co
ISBN: 9781879181861
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 254

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Book Description
The author has gathered Nahua and Maya codexes, Spanish chronicles of conquest, and native oral tradition to recount the life of Quetzalcoatl: his temptation and fall; his initiation with sacred mushrooms; his long journey in search of spiritual enlightenment; his triumphant return to the Toltec land; and his subsequent teaching, self-immolation, ascension, and promise of return.

Encounters with the nagual

Encounters with the nagual PDF Author: Armando Torres
Publisher: Editora Alba
ISBN:
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description
"Every human being is by right a warrior who has achieved his place in the world in a battle of life and death. Look at it this way, at least once, as sperm, we all fight the bullfight for life - a unique contest against millions of other competitors - and we win! Now the battle continues... "A warrior knows that there is no guarantee of triumph over death. Even so, he fights his battle, not because he believes he will win, but because of the emotion of the war itself. For him, to give his war is already a victory. And while he fights he rejoices, because, for those who have already died, every second of life is a gift." "I love my children because they are deposits of my energy, my wife because she washes my clothes, she cooks and I catch her, my dog because he takes care of the house, my country because I was born here, my god because he's going to save me...". "The sorcerers have discovered the most refined form of love, because they love themselves. They have put the power of passion at the service of being, and it gives them the impetus to undertake the only quest that counts: that of oneself.