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CONTENTS Interview with Marija Gimbutas Oneness (poem) Parliament of the World's Religions Declaration of Vision of Indigenous Peoples Scrolls Found in Failed Banks Interpreted (poem) The Interpreter Housing the Spirit End of Patriarchy Movement Report

Plus miscellany, etc. Cover and illustrations by Lou Hart. The cover is a rubbing taken from the carved stone by the basin at Cairn Loughcrew passage grave complex in Ireland. This cairn is aligned with Samhain sunrise, and the carvings are then lit by the sun.

Laura Post Tom LaBlanc Daniel Cohen

Herbert Lass Daniel Cohen Jan Henning

October November December

MOONS and SUNS to Winter Solstice (London GMT) New Moon 15th 11.36 13th 21.34 13th 09.27

Full Moon 30th 12.38 29th 06.31 28th 23.05

Sun enters Scorpio 23rd 09.37 Sagittarius 22nd 07.07 Capricorn 21st 20.26 (solstice)

A total eclipse of the moon, visible in the British Isles, will occur on November 29th, from 04.40 to 08.10, with totality from 06.02 to 06.48.

Sun rises October 31st 06.52 November 1st 06.54 December 21st 08.04 December 22nd 08.04

Sun sets 16.35

15.53

© 1993 Daniel Cohen and Jan Henning. Individual writings and drawings © by their creators. Please write to Wood and Water for permission to reprint.

Wood and Water, volume 2, number 44. Autumn 1993. A Goddess-centred feminist-influenced pagan magazine

ITOiLSAL

I seem mostly to be commenting on the contents of the issues in my editorials. Writing them is usually the last item in getting the magazine ready, and I am running short of ideas.

I am glad that we can leave the issue of child abuse mostly aside for the moment. It was rather weighing down the magazine; but we would have liked more letters, even critical ones (and we aware of some people who were very critical but didn't even bother to inform us, which we consider unhelpful). I write just a few hours after Oprah Winfrey's show (September 22nd) on the validity or otherwise of recovered memories; unlike all other programmes on abuse that I have seen, it was completely unbiased. I will report on this further next issue.

This time we have a real treat for you as we are publishing a long interview with Marija Gimbutas. This was originally published in Of a Like Mind, an American Goddess-centred women's journal with which we exchange. We are very grateful to them and to the author for permission to republish. There is also material from the recent Parliament of the World's Religions, a very exciting event.

I am glad to welcome my co-editor, Jan Henning, back to these pages, and hope to see much more of her writings in future issues. In issue 42 we reported that our previous illustrator, Cathy Dagg, was "taking a rest from drawing for a while to be creative in other ways". We can now report the results of this; Alexander Dagg was born on July 2nd! We are sure all our readers will give good wishes to both of them.

As usual, we welcome contributions — articles, reviews, stories, poems, drawings, and offers to illustrate — from our readers.

Daniel Cohen

WOOD AND WATER SUBSCRIPTION RATES If there is an X in this box

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ADDRESS, c/o Daniel Cohen, 77 Parliament Hill, London NW3 2TH, or c/o Jan Henning, 18 Aylesham Rd., Orpington, Kent BR6 OTX.

1

AN INTERVIEW WITH MARIJA GIMBUTAS

Though Mar i ja Gimbutas had been a world-renowned researcher, thinker, and author in the realm of Neolithic European archaeology for forty years, her work first reached popular consciousness following the publication of her book The Language of the Goddess (Harper and Row) in 1989. (We would consider that in England this happened with her 1974 book 'The Gods and Goddesses of Old Europe', published by Thames and Hudson, or, at the latest, with its 1982 revision as 'The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe'. Eds.) The stated goal of The Language of the Goddess was to analyse the iconography of Old Europe, for the purpose of revealing the basic world-view of pre-Indo-European peoples.

The chronological period in question is approximately 6500 to 3500 BCE; the geographical regions involved extend from the Mediterranean to Russia to Scandinavia and the British Isles. The book's conclusions: the figurines, sculptures, cult objects and pictorial paint ings studied (many are also beautifully depicted and explained in depth) suggest that a peaceful, agrarian, earth-centred, and matri l ineal culture flourished for approximately three thousand years. Moreover, that culture was gradually transformed by the invasion from the East of Indo-Europeans: worshippers of warrior gods, the Indo-European patriarchs brought immediate male supremacy and the eventual social tumult of the modern era. The Language of the Goddess not only described the loss of the matrilineal culture but emphasised the Goddess belief structure as the authentic heritage of Europeans and those of European descent , and took the first steps in reclaiming that nature-based female iconography in the present. (Again, we disagree slightly. While Gimbutas's work is of immense importance, it was by no means the first such step of reclamation. Eds.)

In 1991 the second volume of Gimbutas ' s life work was released in print. Beyond the reconstruction in The Language of the Goddess of the female images, motifs, and archetypes of the Goddess religion, The Civilisation of the Goddess (Harper Collins) attempted the more ambit ious goal of documenting and codifying the existence of the entire Goddess society. The two stunningly i l lustrated tomes not only persuasively argue for the broad-based investigation of archaeological artefacts within the intellectual contexts of mythology, folklore, ethnography, l inguist ics and li terature, but also demonstrate a clear feminist perspective in analysis of existing materials .

What follows is an interview with the Lithuanian-born Mar i ja Gimbutas , Professor Emeritus of European Archaeology at the University of California, Los Angeles, which explores the origins of her motivations, interests, and education.

Tell me about your family. Originally they were from peasant stock, but for generations we had a tradition; my mother

and my aunt were medical doctors, the first women in all central Europe, perhaps, to get degrees in medicine. Both my parents were physicians, and there was a very deep respect for scholarship in my immediate family. Basically, there was no other focus than studying — studying anything — and doing something with that knowledge.

I was raised in total freedom, the beloved daughter who had the same rights as boys and maybe more because girls were somehow considered to be more promising. In some ways, my family was a matriarchal structure (laughs gently).

Did you believe early in your childhood that you might go on to do something important in the world?

Oh, always, a career was always something before me that I had to pursue, and there was no question that I would not be able to do it.

Your skills in language have helped you tremendously in your work; what languages did you know as a child?

Lithuanian was my native language; the second was German, the third was Polish, the fourth was Russian, and then French and English, so I knew maybe six languages in my school

2

days. Later on I had to acquire more linguistic facility in order to understand the literature in my field. Luckily, if you know one of the Slavic languages you can understand most other Slavic languages. And so with the Germanic; if you know German you can understand Danish or Dutch or even Swedish and Norwegian.

Where were you educated? I first studied in Kaunas in Lithuania. In 1941 I got my M.A. degree from the University of

Vilnius, but very soon after that we had to flee from the Soviet regime. I was in Austria and Germany for six years and got my Ph.D. from Tubingen University. In 1949 we came to the United States.

Who came with you? I was already married. I had a child, a daughter, when I fled Lithuania in 1944. It was three

of us at that time. And why did you flee to the US? The US? Well, it was good fortune to come here. I didn't have very close relatives or

friends in this country, but it happened that we were helped to come here by a man who was not a relative, since we had no other connections to go to Brazil or somewhere else. Most of the Lithuanians came to this country, and some went to Canada or Australia, but those who came here, I think, were the most fortunate.

Though it was not easy for me to begin in any of the new countries that we moved to, I would say that the worst years of my life were the first years in America. It was much easier in Germany and Austria — even during the war — because there was some sort of protection, some sort of help. Here, nobody cared for us. We had six dollars, and we had to begin our life. And the six dollars I spent for my husband to go from Connecticut to Boston on the first day, and then I was left in the street.

Did you speak English when you first arrived in the US? No, I could read, but I had no experience in speaking. I thought I knew English, but this

was not real knowledge. I had no good chance, initially, to really study English, even in this country — I never had time — I had to earn bread. I had two small children. Even when I started to work at Harvard University I had to deal with all other languages but English. Ironically, I had to read in Slavic and other languages because I was writing about the prehistory of Eastern Europe. When I wrote my first book I had to translate word for word from Lithuanian into English because I was still thinking in Lithuanian. I used the dictionary, and that was how I started to learn.

So you moved to Boston? Yes, we moved to Boston in June of 1949. In September of the same year I met some

Harvard professors, and I got an invitation to join the anthropology department at Harvard. I became a Research Fellow of the Peabody Museum of Harvard University (I think I still have this title.) I also became a Lecturer of European Archaeology.

What were your degrees in? Archaeology, history of religions, and ethnology. The main field was archaeology. Had you gone to archaeological sites during your education? Not much. I dug some cemeteries still in Lithuania — that was my experience in

grave-digging (laughs openly). The graves were from various centuries AD — not BCE — from Roman times and later. In Germany I had some experience attending other peoples' excavations, mostly Celtic and Bronze Age sites. And only after I was Professor of European Archaeology at UCLA did I have the chance to return to Europe to excavate in the southeast — in Yugoslavia, Italy, and Greece — starting in 1967.

How did you decide to study archaeology, history of religions, and ethnology to begin with?

I would say that these fields were meant for me. After my father's death in 1936 I started to be more interested in philosophy and mythology. At the end of high school I became very interested in literature, and I was urged by my teachers to go into the humanities. Then my cousin — who was like my sister — she studied literature and linguistics, and I wanted to follow

3

in her footsteps. During my first collegiate year I changed study, from English l i terature to Baltic l inguist ics and Indo-European linguistics. For some time I thought I should stay in l inguist ics , but I soon decided that it was not for me. When there came a chance for me to go into archaeology, I started to study archaeology.

What was the chance you talked about having to go into archaeology? Actually, when I started, there was no archaeology taught. Then in 1940 a professor came

— Jonas Puzinas , a young scholar from Heidelberg University. He was Li thuanian, of course, and he needed s tudents ; somehow, he noticed me and tried to get me, and he did get me (chuckles).

At the same t ime, I was very much interested in folklore. During the summers 1939-43, I participated in ethnographic expeditions collecting folk songs. I studied archaeology and folklore and l inguis t ics and graduated init ially in l inguistics. In 1944 we had to flee.

In Tubingen, in 1945 and 46, I studied archaeology, ethnology and history of religions. Subsequently, at Harvard, I used to go to all possible lectures that were given by visi t ing scholars from England, and it was where I started to meet archaeologists. On the whole, I remained self-taught for a long time and had to follow my own inst incts in my invest igations and writing because there were no real authorities in my fields.

What were you writing about? I was writing about East European archaeology; in America, there was nobody who could

help me. I had to be completely on my own. I returned to Europe — for the first t ime only in 1958 when I went to an international conference — and acquired a chain of colleagues and good friends, and I was able to collect information directly from other scholars.

It sounds like you had more stimulating contact with colleagues back in Europe than the United States.

Oh, much more, much more. Yes, of course, as I said, there were visi t ing scholars from England who were very important to my professional development. But, there was very li t t le interest in European archaeology in this country; the subject is hardly taught in colleges.

How did you find the courage, the motivation, to write your first hook, with no role models in this country?

I have been motivated all my life, it was inborn. I was writing some things which were considered to be important, and it seemed that nobody else was doing it, that nobody else could do it. (Prehistory of Eastern Europe appeared in 1956). At the same t ime, I was still pursuing my interests in folk art symbolism and folklore studies; this was work of love. I published a book on the ancient symbolism of Li thuanian folk art in 1958, the book which I wrote during all those years of displaced living in Germany and in the beginning years in North America.

It sounds like you've been self-motivated for a lot of what you've done, that there hasn't really been anyone to follow, and this is, perhaps, part of the importance of what you've done?

True. It was also will power. At certain points, it was extremely difficult: by then, I had two small children, I had no money — in the beginning, Harvard did not pay me anything — yet I had to survive.

Were you working in addition to Harvard? I was sometimes working at night, yes. I always had some j o b to support myself and to

support my family. Now, you had two small children in a new country, with no money, and to be doing

all that you were doing that just interested you and was very important, is remarkable. I would say, looking back, that it was important that I didn't really stop and didn' t l isten to

what people were saying. I worked very hard; actually, I over-worked myself, it was probably too much. I remember how I couldn' t stand to live surrounded by the asphalt, that there were no trees. We were living in poor surroundings, in those first years; only when I went to spend the summer with friends in Canada, in the Thousand Lakes area, did I revive, and I cont inued again.

You're still working hard, doing all these interviews and speaking, and this is 30-something years later!

4

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Yeah (warmly), I th ink I should start vacationing now (laughs). I see that there is no way, I have to be on the move, I have so many invitations and such an avalanche of correspondence that I don't know how I could manage time off.

Do you think you'll do another book, now that you've done these other two? There is now another on the way and still maybe another one, after that , though maybe not

of this scope. The Civilisation of the Goddess is a big book which is the product of thirty years, not of five years. It was more or less a synthesis of what we know about the Neolithic culture of Europe, from the 7th mil lenium to the 3rd millenium BCE.

The Language of the Goddess was a follow-up on the first I wrote which dealt with Neolithic religion, The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe. The topic was, for me, not complete, and I had to cont inue, I had to understand the Neolithic religious symbols more than I did in the beginning, and th is way Language and, more recently, Civilisation, were writ ten.

One of the things you wrote in the introduction to 'Language' is that it felt like there were pieces missing from the whole jigsaw puzzle, that nobody had really put it together, and I felt, when I read that, a driving energy that seems to be in you, to really find those pieces and to put it all together.

I started from scratch. I remember looking at symbols and pottery, and not unders tanding at all . When I started to collect the signs and symbols, I started, gradually, to understand groups of symbols and how they are related.

What do you think about the critics of your theory and of the general theory that the Indo-Europeans were a warlike culture who invaded everybody; specifically, what do you think of the theory that culture was spread by the farmers moving around?

To me, this is nonsense , because what we know about the Indo-Europeans from the l inguistic and mythological research is of utmost importance. These are the people who had their own pantheon of gods, and th is pantheon is well reconstructed; it was male-dominated, it was patriarchal, so was the social system of the Indo-Europeans; the Old European structure was j u s t the opposite. It is known that the early agriculture was very disseminated, and that the spread went from the southeast of Europe to the northwest. However, those early migrating farmers were not Indo-Europeans — they were pre-Indo-Europeans, as we know from comparative l inguis t ics , mythology, and archaeology.

Let's talk about the political ramifications of some of what your book has created. I know there are a lot of feminists, for example, who read what you wrote about a matrilineal society which was peace-loving and earth-centred and have tried to imagine such a society in the past and in the present. What do you think of that approach?

They seem to agree with me, most of the feminists; of course, they would like to see a peaceful, matrilineal society in the present-day world, and, now, they can find evidence for the existence of such a society, in my writing.

I see their reactions, their responses, it is tremendous — all the book-signings, absolutely unbel ievable . There are hundreds of people buying hundreds of my books, books which,

5

previously, I thought that I would not be able to publish because they were too big, with too many i l lustrat ions.

Did you like doing the excavations yourself? Yes, and also no, because I understood quickly that excavations were very long projects ; to

excavate a si te correctly you have to have twenty years. I had only two seasons here, two seasons there, there was not enough to do a complete job , and there were always many difficulties. There have to be 30-50 people working with you, you have to pay them, you have to pay for the travel, it was too much work to apply for the financial support.

Money was always short, but, initially, I had funding from the Smithsonian Inst i tute, from the National Science Foundation, from the Ahmanson Foundation. In the 1980s, I thought that it was t ime for me to stop excavating and start writing.

How did you wind up on the west coast? In 1961, I went to the Center for Advanced Study in Mcnlo Park, near Stanford University. At that t ime I felt so good, I loved this country, and I fell in love with California, instantly. My

question to myself was "Why can I not live here?" Many things were leading to California, and it happened that I got a position at UCLA; I moved, immediately, in 1963; this coincided with my divorce. California is my home now.

Do you perceive yourself as a role model for students of archaeology and mythology, put in that role because of the work you've done?

Yes, but now I am retired, but I am asked almost every week by students, "Can I study with you," and I say, "Sorry, I am retired." And then follows the query, "Where can I study the prehistoric Goddess religion?" and I say, "I don't know." In America, there is so l i t t le interest in what I have been doing. There are no courses, only a few courses even in European archaeology. In some universi t ies , archaeology is connected with the Classics department, in some with the Near Eastern Studies, in some with Anthropology, and some universi t ies, like UCLA, have an Archaeology programme, but European Neolithic or Bronze Age is taught or touched upon very l i t t le .

When you retired, did someone continue your work at UCLA? No, no one cont inues my work, and it has been two years. So this is your retirement. You're not teaching formally, but you're going around

lecturing and having people come up to you, and signing books. That's not, I think, what most people think of when they think of retirement. They think of quiet times and hobbies. It sounds like you're still focussing a lot of your time on this kind of work. Obviously, 'Civilisation' has just come out, you talked about maybe even two more; are there things you do for fun, that are relaxing?

You are asking about something else that I do (laughs hard)? Well , I am a big animal lover. I have a desert place where I had horses and nine dogs — i t ' s fewer now — but it is an oasis with hundreds of trees where I walk and like to be. In Los Angeles, I live in beautiful Topanga Canyon. Sometimes, I can forget that there is a city of Los Angeles.

What are your plans for the future? Oh, there arc some plans of course! I have a plan to go to a conference first, in Mallorca

and the Balearic Islands, then I have a lecture tour in Germany — I have engagements in four places in western Germany. Then I shall have a shorter trip to Li thuania , a side trip to my daughter, my other relatives, to see Lithuania as an independent country. We have been dreaming of independence for forty years, here it is. Li thuania is independent.

Laura Post (Laura Post is an American writer who has previously written about prominent

women in medicine, athletics, politics, and the performing fields. This interview originally appeared in 'Of a Like Mind', an American magazine, with which we exchange) focussed on Goddess religion, women's mysteries, paganism, and our earth connection from a woman-centred perspective. We are grateful to Laura Post and O ALM for permission to reprint this interview.)

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THE PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD'S RELIGIONS

The first Parliament of the World's Religions was held in Chicago in 1893. That gathering is regarded as the origin of the major interest in Eastern religions in the West. The conference was particularly impressed with Swami Vivekananda, a disciple of the great Hindu mystic Ramakrishna, and the Vedanta movement was started after his visit.

At that Parliament two groups notable by their absence were Native Americans and Anglicans. The first were not invited, while the Archbishop of Canterbury refused his support on the grounds that Christ iani ty was the only valid religion.

This summer, to celebrate the centenary of the first Parliament, a second Parliament of the World's Religions was again held in Chicago, attended by more than 6000 people. Native Americans were present and gave many presentations, which were the high points of the gathering to many participants. This time pagan groups were represented, including the Fellowship of Isis, the Covenant of the Goddess, Circle Sanctuary, and Earthspirit . There were about twenty or more events in each time slot, so that even if one concentrated on one religious grouping or an area of discussion, there were always clashes in the programme.

Although Anglicans were there, the main Christian presence came from Cathol ics and Orthodox groups. The latter, though originally planning to give several talks, withdrew because they did not want to associate with groups who did not accept the existence of a Supreme Being. It is not clear if they were referring to pagans or to Buddhists; the latter put out an open letter stat ing that Buddhism is not a God-based religion and object ing to the frequent use of the term "God" in presentat ions.

Catholic participation included Cardinal Bernardin, Archbishop of Chicago, and a representative from the Vatican. One of the surprises of the conference for me was a talk by a Benedict ine on the Easter liturgy (in a workshop on liturgy in which the other part icipants were a Native American and a Wiccan). He told us how parts of the service were based on the four e lements , others came from the Eleusinian Mysteries or from other early agricultural festivals.

By contrast with the Christian participation, Buddhists and Hindus were there in large numbers, and there were also many Jains and Moslems. Unless one attended the events, it was impossible to tell if such presenters were American converts or came directly from these traditions.

There were quite a number of presentations by women, and sessions on various aspects of women and religion or women and spirituality. But there was no explicit feminist presentation anywhere (though feminist theologians took part in some discussions), and a general lack of concern about such issues. Apart from the Pagans, very few people in the major sessions found it natural to refer to God as She; I was pleased to find that those who did were Jewish.

The opening ceremony contained blessings and invocations from many groups, including one by Olivia Robertson, co-founder of the Fellowship of Isis, and a special blessing by Native Americans. The closing session was addressed by the Dalai Lama, who said that there is a need for many religions because people differ in their psychological and spiritual make-ups. This session concluded with blessings from speakers representing many groups; once again the Native American speaker was particularly well-received. During this closing session a group of Pagans unfurled a banner which read "The Goddess; you can' t ignore Her any longer."

Apart from Olivia Robertson's opening blessing, various Fol groups held events, including a mystery play. Other pagan groups also held several events, the workshop "What is Wicca?" was held twice, each time with fifty or more people present; the question most frequently asked was "What place is there for men in a Goddess-based religion?" Both the Fellowship of Isis and the Covenant of the Goddess had hospitality suites, where people could go to ask questions. I was very pleased to be able to meet American pagans whose names I had known of for many years, such as Selena Fox of Circle, and Isaac Bonewits the Druid (and writer on many parodies of serious pagan songs).

The CoG held an open-air full moon ritual with about two hundred people present, both pagans and interested outsiders, most of whom found the ceremony moving. (This was held the day after the full moon, because of difficulties with getting a permit from the Parks Department; these were only solved with the intervention of the American Civil Libert ies Union.) I have seen

8

discussions in Brit ish pagan magazines about whether public ri tuals are a good idea or whether they put off outsiders who may be watching. What I learned from this event is how much more skilled the Americans are than us in putting on such ri tuals; also, it became clear that th is is a skill of its own, probably needing theatre training, and that someone who is excellent at planning and leading a ritual for a small group who are already used to ri tuals may be hopeless at holding large public r i tuals.

Pagan groups were represented at the Assembly of Religious and Spiritual Leaders, a group of about 150 representatives of various faiths which met during the Parl iament . They put together a Declaration of a Global Ethic which it was intended that the Assembly should adopt. This made commitments to a culture of: non-violence and respect for life, solidarity and a jus t economic order, tolerance and a life of truthfulness, equal rights and partnership between men and women. (I have copies of this nine-page document for anyone who is interested, and may be able to publish fuller extracts in a later edition of Wood and Water.) This proved controversial, perhaps because "God" was not mentioned, and was not accepted by the Assembly as a whole, although many part icipants signed it. By contrast, a Declaration of Vision was put to the Assembly by the Native Americans, and received its support.

I at tended a Native American Pow-wow, outside the Parliament. I was delighted by the presence of a large number of children, from tiny babies to teen-agers — a great contrast with the very few children present at the Parliament. People of all ages took part in the ceremonial dance at the pow-wow, from five to seventy-five. Pagans could learn from this about including children in their events, whether formal rituals or informal gatherings.

The workshops by Native Americans covered both spirituality (for ins tance , creation stories) and polit ics, although they would not separate the two, but would regard both as aspects of their way of life. They spoke of the many treaties broken by the US government, and the mistreatment received by children who were put in Christian schools and forbidden to speak their own language. They called for the return of their artefacts and the bones of their ancestors from the museums (and private collectors) of the world.

They were particularly keen to put a stop to the proliferation of "urban shamans" and "plastic medicine men". There was private discussion between Native American and Pagan representatives on this issue; although Pagans have more awareness of the problems than most New Age people, we still have much to learn about this . The women leading a workshop I attended gave some criteria for te l l ing whether an alleged medicine person was genuine. To begin with, if anyone says they arc a medicine person, question the claim (some of the holy people have kept themselves so secret that it took one woman several years to learn that her husband was a pipekecper). Those who are genuine will know their own language, and will have a connection with their reservation; so try to find out their links with the area they claim to come from. A claim to have studied under a particular medicine man is suspect, as th i s is not the way true medicine people gain their knowledge and powers. And, of course, no-one charges for ceremonies.

As some of these criteria are much harder to check over here than in the USA, I would add two which the women did not mention. First, there is no such thing as " the teachings of Native American spir i tuali ty"; though different nations have spiritual views that are closer to each other than to European spirituality, there are considerable differences. A true teacher will ta lk about the Lakota way, the Iroquois way, or similar expressions, and they are not likely to talk about the ways of a nation to which they do not belong. Also, ask what the people are doing to give something back to those from whom they claim to have learned; are they taking part in tribal act ivi t ies, or supporting the political struggles for control of the sacred lands, or any such activi t ies.

All in all, an excit ing event, with much material on ecology and spiri tuali ty, e th ics in business , religion and violence, and other aspects of dialogue between religious groups. I felt it was symbolic of the possibil i t ies for a better world that information about the moves for peace between Israel and the Palest inians first became public while the Parliament was being held.

Daniel Cohen

9

DECLARATION OF VISION

Toward the next 500 years from the gathering of the 1993 United Indigenous Peoples at the Parliament of the World's Religions, Chicago, Illinois, 1993

We as indigenous peoples and Native Nations, honoring our ancestors and for our future generations do hereby declare our presence and continuing survival with our sacred homelands in the Western Hemisphere.

Since time immemorial we have lived in a spiritual way in keeping with our sacred laws, principles and values given to us by the Creator. Our ways of life are based on respect for Mother Earth, a sacred regard for all relations and the survival of our languages, cultures and traditions.

In the "Year of the Indigenous Peoples", while the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights are still being prepared, We ask for solidarity in our cause from the religions of the world.

We call upon the people of conscience in the Roman Catholic hierarchy to persuade Pope John Paul II to formally revoke the Inter Cetera Bull of May 4, 1493, which will restore our fundamental human rights. That Papal document called for our Nations and Peoples to be subjugated so that the Christian Empire and its doctrines be propagated. The United States Supreme Court ruling Johnson vs. Mcintosh 8 Wheat 543 (1823) has adopted the same principle of subjugation expressed in the Inter Cetera Bull. This Papal Bull has been, and continues to be, devastating to our religions, our cultures, and the survival of our populations. Since 1492, 85% of our 145,000,000 populations have been decimated by the effect of the Papal Bull. We call upon the people of conscience in the many other organised religions whose historical actions have participated in the dehumanisation of of our Indigenous Nations, to help us put an end to the violation of our Peoples' human rights. We call for an end of the deafening silence of religious denominations and groups regarding the violations of our peoples' human rights, because this silence implies complicity and tolerance of the effects. One hundred years ago during the 1893 Parliament of the World's Religions, the profoundly

religious Original Peoples of the Western Hemisphere were not invited. We are still here and still struggling to be heard for the sake of our Mother Earth and our children. Our spiritual and physical survival continues to be threatened all over the hemisphere, we feel compelled to ask you to join us in restoring the balance of humanity and Mother Earth in these ways: A. Acknowledgement of the myriad of messengers of the Creator, the Great Mystery, to the

peoples of the Western Hemisphere. B. Support in promoting, preserving, and maintaining our Indigenous languages and cultures. C. Involvement in the world outcry against the continuing genocide of Indigenous Peoples of

the Americas, by taking direct action in support of the International Conventions prohibiting genocide in their various countries.

D. Protection and return of the sacred sites and traditional lands of the Indigenous Peoples. E. Reversal of environmental degradation that endangers our traditional lifeways and

threatens our very existence. F. Repatriation of our ancestors and sacred objects from the museums and holdings of the

world.

WITH RESPECT FOR ALL LIFE, WE THANK YOU.

(As mentioned elsewhere, this declaration was presented to the Assembly of Religious and Spiritual Leaders at the Parliament, who gave it their approval. Readers in the British Isles wishing to support this declaration by their actions may find item F of particular relevance. Eds.)

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The Pagan Hospice and Funeral Trust is holding its first Open Day on October 30th, 10.30am-8.30pm, at Neal ' s Yard Rooms, Neal 's Yard (off Neal St., Covent Garden), London WC2. Tickets £5 (concessions £3) in advance from PHFT, BM Box 3337, London WC1N 3XX, or £1 extra at the door. Speakers include Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki and a representative from the BMA. This sounds like an interesting and important event for pagans who arc not preparing for Hallowe'en to at tend and to bring non-pagan friends, especially nurses and similar people.

The Dragon eco-magical action group now has open meetings from 7.30pm on the second Tuesday of each month at the Plough, Museum St., London W C l . Contact them at 3 Sanford Walk, London SE14 6NB, phone 081 692 1358, for other information about this or about regional act ivi t ies. An autumn equinox ritual in Epping Forest is planned for October 3rd, and on 23rd October there is a day of action against Laing and Tarmac in North Wales (details 0492 592528).

We are glad the action to save Oxleas Wood was successful. But there are still rumours of roads under the wood which may be almost as damaging as the original plan. Keep in touch with Dragon for up-to-date information.

The Central TV programme "In Satan 's Name", discussing the phenomenon of 'adult survivors of satanic abuse ' and some of the dubious therapists involved, was almost the only unbiased programme I have seen on the subject , although it still had its flaws. One Birmingham doctor claimed that about 10% of the UK population were Satanists , and that these included not only members of the Royal Family, but even people in a higher position that the Royals? We would welcome suggestions as to who such higher people could be!

The Pagan Federation Conference will be held on 28th November, but we have no other details at present. Contact them at BM Box 7097, London WC1N 3XX.

National Tree Week is always held in the last week of November or first week in December, so we never have details in advance. Look out for events in your area. You could contact The Woodland Trust, Autumn Park, Grantham, Lines. NG31 6LL to see what information they can supply.

The 1994 Lunar Calendar from Luna Press in Boston, USA, has now appeared. This year it has a picture and/or poem (including ones by Asphodel and Wren Sidhe) for each month, as well as full drawings of the lunations and other information. Bookshop availabil i ty uncertain at present, but Wood and Water is able to obtain copies at £10 including postage.

Cheryl Straffon, editor of Meyn Mamvro, a magazine with which we exchange (see back page for address), has jus t published a book Pagan Cornwall: Land of the Goddess, cost £8. Sounds good (there are some il lustrations by Monica Sjoo), but we haven ' t seen it yet.

Ellen Cooney, some of whose poems we have published, has recently produced a book of poems Within the Labyrinth All. Price 10 dollars (plus postage?) from Duir Press, 919 Sutter St. #9, San Francisco CA 94109. If there are enough requests, Wood and Water might be able to order copies for a postage included price of about £8.

We reported in an earlier issue about a Florida town's attempt to ban animal sacrifice in Santería, a traditional religion. The Supreme Court struck down this local law. While kill ing of animals for food, sport, or for no reason, is permitted, they agreed that religious kill ings should not be prohibited.

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SCROLLS FOUND IN FAILED BANKS INTERPRETED

Proof that the Bib le ' s story of creation is the creation of ancient revisionists has come to light. Earlier doubters were right, but they didn't tell all.

Maybe they didn't know all. Or maybe they thought the facts would have unfortunate effects on impressionable minds. They were censors, too, like the guys who turned the true story of Genesis upside-down in order to stay on top of succeeding generations.

The facts are these: God created woman first and when HE/SHE looked at what SHE/HE had done the HE half felt HIS amorphous corpus stirring. HE was bothered by a strange sensation.

Then the SHE half of SHE/HE said If that is supposed to be in YOUR image something 's missing. The HE half of HE/SHE reacted in the manner passed down through repetitive thousands of uncapital ised he /she configurations. HE said I'VE been doing creating all week so don't tell ME that I don't know how. To which SHE replied YOU did the thunder and the l ightning okay, but let ME remind YOU that I did the flowers YOU only did the big animals, and some of them are the funniest-looking things I ever saw, and I did the birds and bees. HE said there ' s no point arguing with YOU. If YOU'RE so good YOU do something to improve it. Then HE looked again at HIS creation the first woman and again HE felt that strange stirring in HIS amorphous being So HE said to the SHE half of the Divine Spirit YOU'RE ju s t j ea lous .

SHE shrugged an amorphous shoulder. SHE took another look at the first woman. After a while SHE told her you need a man, don't ask ME why. Then SHE immaculately took the first man out of the bottom of the first woman's belly painlessly.

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m

When the first woman and first man woke up and looked at each other the first man felt this strange sensation in his corpus. What the first woman felt was not recorded by the genesis distorters, or the scrollers, and no search of the past has found it. But it is known that the first man said to the first woman Hey, who are you? I am — But the first woman interrupted. I am Eve she said, and I can see you are going to be A damn — At that point the HE half of the Creative Partnership in HIS pique loosed a thunder that drowned out further conversation.

First woman and first man roamed around for some weeks. After they made the full circuit a dozen times clockwise, counter, and criss and cross Eve said I've seen it. Take me out. I need a change of scene. This eden is dull. We have life but we are not living. Let's get out of here and really live. Have fun and sorrow, Cry and laugh, And love.

They left the garden, Eve leading Adam. HE/SHE didn't shoo them out. SHE/HE recognised that Eve and Adam were bones of contention in the Divine Blameless Existence. THEY were glad to see them go.

Herbert Lass

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THE INTERPRETER; or An Introduction to Hermeneutics

It was all the interpreter's fault. He came to our city looking for employment. It was soon clear that he had a wide

knowledge of many languages, and most of our merchants began to employ him in their dealings with foreign traders. We saw him speeding from one to another, in those sandals of his with the odd widening at the heels, often pausing to tell one merchant of a recent purchase of interest by another.

It seemed that trade prospered with his coming. Our merchants became wealthier and busier than they had ever been. Strangely enough, though, it seemed that the city's thieves also prospered. There were more daring burglaries, more pockets picked on an empty street, than ever before. But this actually added to the city's sense of life, as it all happened without any increase in violence.

His work was so good that we asked him to interpret for several diplomatic missions. Once again we seemed to get the better of the deals, though the foreigners seemed pleased, too. We grew used to seeing him in all parts of the city, using his staff to emphasise points, or bringing it down with a thump when deals were concluded. We admired the spiral decorations running round it - sometimes they seemed to us to be moving, but that was surely no more than a trick of the light.

The trouble arose when we decided that such a cultured man deserved to learn about our religion and the truths it contained.

We showed him one of our sacred scrolls, written in the old language, and we were not a bit surprised when he was able to read and translate it without difficulty.

But then he took the same scroll, and began to read something different from it. "What are you saying?" we asked. "The text does not include this." He answered "The first time I read, I read the words formed by the ink on the parchment". We were puzzled; what else was there to read? "But then I read the word still to be formed" he said, "the word waiting patiently to be revealed, to rise out of the white spaces between the letters and to be received". He showed us that every text contains two messages, one formed by the ink and the other by the spaces left between the inked letters, and that the message was never complete if only the first text was read.

We asked him to expound to us further. He did so for some time, and then we were surprised to hear him ask "Why were cows so important to your people in the old days?" "But they weren't" we protested, "cows aren't even mentioned in the sacred books". "That reminds me of the curious incident of the dog in the night" was his puzzling reply. "What dog? What night?" "Oh, never mind" he said, "I was thinking of an occasion far away in time and space from here". "But what about the cows" we persisted.

"Your people of old included many farmers, and farming is still important to you." "Of course." "And your farms contain horses, sheep, pigs, and cattle, as well as chickens and plants." "Certainly." "Then why do your texts speak of horses, sheep, and pigs, and yet they make no mention of cattle."

We couldn't answer this, and he showed us once again that what the text does not contain is as important to a true interpretation as what is made explicit in it.

By this time everyone in the city had heard of the new readings he was giving to the old texts, and a passionate interest in theology was now part of people's lives. The priests and the rulers, of whom I am not the least, felt that this would make the city easier to govern. How little we understood!

By now he was talking each week in the main square. One day we noticed an unusually large number of sailors among the crowds. Wc were surprised, as they had not been greatly involved in the past, but we did not expect that wc were seeing the beginning of real trouble. The interpreter began to speak of the sea, and we assumed that the sailors had attended because of some rumour that this might happen. "The sea is important to you" he said. "Much of your commerce is carried out by sea, there are always ships in the harbour, and many of your people arc sailors or involved with shipping." The sailors cheered approvingly. "The sacred texts speak

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frequently of the sea with great emotion." We all agreed. "And yet, though sailors and the sea are important to you, all the sacred texts were written by landfolk." Here wc began to be worried, as we heard the sailors start muttering among themselves. We asked how he had determined this . "Landfolk are affected differently from sailors by the sea" he began. "The sea is both more matter-of-fact and more ever-present and more mysterious to sailors than to landfolk. It is borne forcibly home to sailors how far below and around them at all moments is shifting salt water in which they cannot survive. This perhaps causes them to view our human existence as something precarious and temporary in the nature of things; landfolk have more the il lusion of stabil i ty and permanence."

He stopped at that point, and we all felt we had much to ponder on. We were not surprised to find even more sailors in the crowd the next week. "Why" he began, "s ince sailors and the sea are so important to you, are sailors not permit to officiate in temple ceremonies." We explained to him that sailors arc always travelling, and cannot be relied upon to be at the temples at the proper t imes. "But your merchants travel also in search of new goods and markets, and there is no restriction on them." "Tha t ' s different" we explained to him at once, "Merchants are set t led people, and if one can ' t be present on some occasion, there is always someone else available for the ceremonies." "Then couldn't the same be done for sailors." Once again we explained to him that that was different, but he remained obstinately unable to see any difference.

By that time the sailors were restless. Some of them suddenly unfurled a banner demanding that sailors should have the right to conduct sacrifices on behalf of the people. We hastily declared the day's session closed, and called in the military to persuade people to leave the square quietly.

After that th ings got worse and worse. Some factions demanded that sailors should have the same religious opportunities that merchants and even farmers had. Others retorted that they would prefer to worship other gods rather than allow the old traditions to be denied by having a sailor officiate.

Things were in such a turmoil that we decided to expel the interpreter whose sayings had so disturbed our peaceful city.

"Why did you do th i s" we asked as we pushed him out of the c i ty ' s main gate. "If you don't know why change was needed, ask the sailors. Let them write the texts not

yet writ ten, let them speak the prophecies not yet spoken. As for myself, where you saw stabil i ty I saw steril i ty, and I acted so that you would find the world turned upside down. And besides " he added, "I thought it might be an Improoovement."

As he turned and looked at us, we noticed that the swelling on the heels of his sandals were wings, and the spiral decorations round his staff could now be clearly seen to be living snakes coiling and writhing. "And so," he said with a grin, "I have now given you an introduction to Hermes ' New Tricks!"

NOTES Hermes, trickster and lord of language, probably likes puns. This story had its

origin in the pun in the last line and the subtitle. Hermeneutics (the derivation is from a Greek word meaning 'interpreter', which in

turn is derived from 'Hermes') is the art of interpretation, especially of the scriptures. The account given in the story does cover some basic hermeneutical techniques. Some of the ideas were suggested by Elizabeth Schussler Fiorenza's two academic books on feminist hermeneutics, 'But She Said' and 'Bread, not Stone'.

Hermes has, I hope, shown his approval of this story by letting me discover two relevant quotations after I had begun two episodes. The sentences "But then I read ...to be received" are by Lynn Gottlieb ('The Secret Jew' in 'On Being A Jewish Feminist'), while the passage about landfolk comes (with very minor changes) from A.S. Byatt's 'Angels and INSECTS'. Rimble, the Trickster god who is the central character of Zohra Greenhalgh's fantasy novel, 'Contrarywise', asked me to be sure to mention his favourite notion, that of an 'Imprqooyement'.

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The controversy over sailors and their role in the temple was suggested by a current controversy in the Church of England.

Do you think the story is too male-dominated, with its mention of farmers, merchants, and sailors? If so, use some hermeneutical analysis. The only character whose gender is mentioned is the interpreter himself.

Daniel Cohen

HOUSING THE SPIRITS; MASKING WORKSHOPS

(I am very pleased to welcome Jan Henning, my co-editor, back to these pages. Jan has been a maskmaker ever since creating a Jack-in-the-Green mask in the late 1970s --I wore the mask, and it was a powerful experience, my own personality being at times submerged in that of Jack. Jan has recently spent a year doing an MA in Text and Performance Studies at King's College and RADA, during which she has deepened her knowledge of mask working techniques. Daniel)

The making and wearing of masks seems to be a universal human activity. They appear at the very beginnings of drama itself, and have continued to appear and re-appear at different times and places.

In my workshops, I go right back to the places where masks started — where they came from. In many societies masks came into the world as gifts from deities or spirits, and were actualised by humans who first made and then wore them in honour of those same entities.

It is important, then, that maskers undertake both the making and the wearing even if the masks they make are not ultimately for themselves. My workshops therefore encompass either or both activities.

My workshops include the following. Finding your mask: A short relaxation and guided meditation session to free minds and

open them, so that ideas and images for masks can be more clearly seen. Making the masks: The basic mask-forms arc provided, together with a selection of items

for transforming them — paints, fabrics, paper, glue, glitter, varnish, sequins, wools, and silk flowers. Or, given time, masks can be created in papier-mache.

Meeting the masks: Whether the masks have been made at a workshop, or whether they arrive ready-made, time is needed to meet them, this is the time to try them on, to see how they look, to hear what they may say to you, to feel how they are.

Awakening the masks: This workshop begins with blank 'neutral' masks. In addition to getting participants accustomed to the feel of a mask on the face, these masks allow them to drop preconceptions, and 'see' the world as a Mask. Once participants are used to the idea of wearing a mask, they will awaken a 'character' mask which they will either have made or chosen. It will then be possible to discover how the Masks interact with the actor, and with one another.

Using the masks: A celebration of the masks that have been made or encountered. What form this will take depends on the masks — and on the participants. Perhaps it will involve music and dance; perhaps it will be a story to enact, or a ritual. Perhaps something will get written — a play, a poem, a meditation. Or perhaps all of these things.

To arrange for me to give a workshop, contact me at 18 Aylcsham Rd., Orpington, Kent BR6 OTX, phone: 0689 836352 (evenings).

Jan Henning

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REPORT ON THE AMA MAWU I END OF PATRIARCHY MOVEMENT

Following on from the initial meeting on 10th January we decided that it was absolutely necessary to address racism as a major issue to end patriarchy, because we want to create a multi-racial movement of women. We therefore organised a two-day gathering on this issue.

This conference was held successfully on 8th and 9th May at St. Werburgh's Community Centre, Bristol. It was attended by a hundred or so women from up and down the country. Due to past experiences of racism in the women's movement many women of colour did not come although many workshops were facilitated by black women. However we did receive positive feedback from most of the black women who came and there was a lot of interest shown for future anti-racist work.

On the second day of the conference two groups of women decided to take direct action. One group went into Tesco's superstore to make a statement against multi-national food corporations. They circle-danced their way through the aisles with slogans sellotaped to their front and back. The larger group went to the ten o'clock service at Bristol Cathedral to declare the end of the rule of the God Fathers. They sang in front of the altar facing the congregation The Burning Times, a song about the witchhunts. The procession was accompanied by a reproduction of the painting God Giving Birth which was held up during the singing. As they left the cathedral some women declared the End of Patriarchy. The women who took part felt that they had broken an absolute taboo and had rent through the fabric of patriarchy.

To our surprise the local pagan community was less than supportive. Pagan Voice, for example, abused and slandered the women in question. They disassociated themselves entirely from the action and the editorial maintained that it represented ALL pagans in condemning the event.

The next happening was to be on Lammas Full Moon, August 1st, at Silbury Hill, the official beginning of the End of Patriarchy. Some of the same women who have organised Women's Spiral Camps in Wales took it ton themselves to organise a pre-post-patriarchal Spiral Camp near the site which lasted for two weeks.

In the evening women gathered on Silbury Hill, there was a fire, drumming and dancing, women dressed in costumes, Kennet Long Barrow was lit up with candles and decorated. The celebration lasted all night and many women slept out on the hilltop under the full moon. The Earthmother was speaking to us, the experience was awesome.

The issue was carried on by women at the Green Gathering Rainbow Circle Camps where the End of Patriarchy was discussed in a mixed environment as a main theme.

Since the beginning of the year many of us were inspired to take personal responsibility to spread the idea of the End of Patriarchy. Individual women have been suing graffiti, letters and article writing, discussion, music, painting and making new links to support the cause.

There has been national and international interest in the Ama Mawu / End of Patriarchy movement. Women all over the country have expressed an interest in setting up affinity groups. And as it is only a beginning we hope that many actions and events will follow.

Bringing about the End of Patriarchy incorporates women's involvement on many levels: political-outward-action, spiritual-inward-personal, transformation, healing, daring, confront-ation, and much more. May we grow in strength and number and link up with others.

Ama Mawu political spirituality group is meeting regularly in Bristol. Our next meeting is on the Full Moon, 30th September.

Please ring for further details Bristol 559350 (Misha), 515219 (Justine). (This account was collectively written by members of Ama Mawu.)

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