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From guest blogger Sandra del Castillo, mythologist, writer, and performance artist – a comment on Maria Sabina. It begins w/an excerpt of her chants during the velada ceremony and concludes with a very brief overview of her work, from a mythopoetic viewpoint María Sabina: March 17, 1894- November 22, 1985, Huatla, Oaxaca, Mexico “Holy Mary, …

With the Halloween season in full gear, it’s no wonder that we see La Bruja almost everywhere, flying around on her broomstick, long black robes and hair trailing behind her. But La Bruja isn’t alone these days in her mischief. She’s accompanied by an endless number of vampires, werewolves, zombies, Transformers and Disney princesses. I …

The origins of the word “witch” came from words having to do with magic and/or religion. There were derivations that had meanings of craftiness and guile, and others that meant holy. The word was also related to wisdom and knowledge. There are many speculations and questions about the root of the word and how it …

At the end of Hispanic Heritage Month, I want to talk about self-knowledge and self-reflection. Many of our Powerful Latina interviewees have emphasized the need to know ourselves well. I would argue that this self-knowledge is also good to have about the GROUPS one is involved in, including one’s ethnic/heritage/racial group. For Latinos, there are …