Like a Skin
For those of us who have grown up in the ‘West’, we tend to think of religion as a customizable category. Some of us are born into a…
Tag: Religion
The Struggle to Protect a Tree at the Heart of Hopi Culture
To Hopi traditionalists—Hopis who practice traditional culture—the humble one-seed juniper tree has deep cultural meaning. Mark Sykes A rumbling, low boom unfurled over the land like a cu…
Hobby Lobby’s Antiquities Trouble
The Department of Justice’s case against Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. is one of only a few instances in which illegal antiquities were confiscated, but investigations into smuggled artifacts…
Consecrating Science: new book on science, myth, and the Anthropocene by Lisa Sideris
A title soon to be released that is worth adding to your “to read” list from Lisa Sideris, published by University of California Press. A bit of a…
Tweeting religion in Indonesia: when political arenas go viral
Postill, J. and L.C. Epafras forthcoming 2017. Tweeting religion in Indonesia: when political arenas go viral. American Ethnologist (virtual issue) The popularity of social media in Indonesia, combi…
God or Geology? The Genesis of Ram’s Bridge
An army of monkey warriors helps construct a bridge from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu to Sri Lanka, as depicted in the Ramayana. Dinodia Photos/Alamy Stock Photo This…
What Religious Beliefs Reveal About Post-Truth Politics
As part of a traditional ritual, elderly Bidayuh practitioners invite the rice spirit and other spirits to participate in the festivities at the sangar, or bamboo altar. Liana…
On the Craft of Writing w/ Dr. Anita Hannig
How do academics write for a variety of audiences? Is routine a necessary part of creating? How many times will Ryan mention Stephen King? In this episode of…
On the Craft of Writing w/ Dr. Anita Hannig
How do academics write for a variety of audiences? Is routine a necessary part of creating? How many times will Ryan mention Stephen King? In this episode of…
‘Those are our Eiffel Towers, our pyramids’: Why Standing Rock is about much more than oil
Standing Rock is cast as an environmental protest, but the Native American Water Protectors are part of a religious tradition that predates Christianity On May 15, the Dakota…
Eating People Is Wrong—But It’s Also Widespread and Sacred
This 15th-century depiction of cannibalistic practices was inspired by Marco Polo’s writings about traveling through Asia. Bibliothèque Nationale/Wikimedia Commons This article was origin…
Pandora’s Brew: The New Ayahuasca Part 7
Conclusion: It’s all fun and games… As I mentioned in the first post of my series, anthropologists and ethnobiologists have played an outsized role in studying and popularizing…
Spring (northern hemisphere) Anthropocene books out now or soon…
A few recently released or soon to be released titles (not counting my own) on various aspects of the Anthropocene. Clive Hamilton’s Defiant Earth: The Fate of Humans…
Islam Nusantara: Conferentie over een vreedzame Islam.
Door Freek Colombijn. Van 27-29 maart vond in Nederland de “1st Biennial International Conference on Moderate Islam in Indonesia” plaats. De conferentie was georganiseerd door de Nederlandse afdeling…
Refusing Blood, Establishing Relational Biocitizenship: Collectivizing Moments among Jehovah’s Witnesses in Germany
Hide Press Release (2 Less Words) Małgorzata Rajtar Picture 1: Excerpt from a Jehovah’s Witness advance directive. © Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. Photo: M.…
Aesthetics or Ethnography? Notes on the Amsterdam Anthropology Lecture Series (AALS)
Photography by Omar, one of Termeer’s respondents By Matthias Teeuwen When one thinks of a Muslim artist in the Netherlands one naturally thinks of someone who, with his…
Do Dreams Give Voice to the Divine?
Many Muslims believe that dreams engage critical and meaningful realms of experience—sometimes offering prophecy and at other times providing divinely inspired insights and encounters. Michel…
Pandora’s Brew: The New Ayahuasca Part 4
Ayahuasca Healings Last week (March 18, 2017), I received an email that read, in toto: Just like I promised: Get the free eBook here (right click, “Save Link…
Wrestling With the Culture of Drug Testing in Sports
Lutte avec frappe, or “wrestling with punches,” the most popular sport in Senegal, adopted international anti-doping rules in 2015. Mark Hann On May 31, 2015, the combat between…
Pandora’s Brew: The New Ayahuasca
Part 2: The New Ayahuasca Churches Yesterday I sat in on a webinar sponsored by ICEERS (the International Center for Ethnobotanical Education, Research and Service) and organized by anthropologist…
Pandora’s Brew: The New Ayahuasca
Savage Minds welcomes guest blogger Christina Callicott. I’m guessing that by now most of my readers will have heard of this stuff called “ayahuasca.” Everyone from Stephen Colbert…
More maps!
Maps are a useful tool for helping us make sense of our world. For anthropologists, they are also useful tools for critically thinking about the kinds global-local social…
More maps!
Maps are a useful tool for helping us make sense of our world. For anthropologists, they are also useful tools for critically thinking about the kinds global-local social…
Rice Reveals African Slaves’ Agricultural Heritage
Clues about the history—and survival—of African slaves in the Americas can be found in certain plants, such as rice. David Williams When Tinde van Andel purchased a small…