Category: News & Articles

General ASWM news and organizational updates

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Announcing the 2020 Sarasvati Award for Best Nonfiction Book

The Sarasvati Book Award solicits scholarly nonfiction books published during 2018-2019 in the fields of goddess studies/women and mythology. Named for the Hindu goddess of learning and the creative arts, the award is given by the Association for the Study of Women and Mythology to honor outstanding scholarship and presentation. The award will be presented during ASWM’s 2020 conference in Albuquerque, NM.

Submissions and book copies must be received by the Awards Committee no later than February 1, 2020. Books must be published in print, rather than only in e-book format. Nominations must come directly from the publisher; authors should contact their publishers to ask them to submit a work for this award. Each publisher may nominate one work published in 2018-2019. Anthologies and self-published books are not eligible for this award.

 Contact aswmsubmissions@gmail.com for forms and details of the submissions process.

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A fundraiser on Facebook

Bee on Sunflower, by Ginny Stibolt

Hi All,

This year for the first time we have set up a Facebook fundraiser for ASWM.

If you are on FB check out (Association for Study of Women and Mythology)  and by all means respond there or here on the website.

We are seeking funds for our Indigenous Scholars Fund, which we have used since 2015 to support Native American and Indigenous students and scholars. We will use this fundraiser to

  • offer conference scholarships to presenters and students
  • videotape presentations to assure online availability of their research
  • encourage meaningful and respectful conversations about indigenous myths and sacred stories.

Thanks in advance for helping us to build strong collaborations for the future!

 

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Matching Fundraiser for ASWM Projects!

Opis, Roman Goddess of Abundance

Our First Matching Funds Campaign! Help us get to $5,000!

We are thrilled to announce a generous donor has offered to match your donation, dollar for dollar, up to $5,000. We are so thrilled and grateful for this support!

Please help us not let this generous offer slip away. Make a donation now and have your gift DOUBLED! No amount is too small to match.  Here’s why:

The ASWM Board, Advisory Council and volunteer committees have many projects and programs in the works as we continue to build this vibrant community.  We are hard at work on our 2020 conference, our next publication of proceedings, the next members only salons,  our online Resource Library, and a long overdue website redesign.  Please help us reach our goals by donating today!

Questions about donating to ASWM? Please contact our Board Treasurer: womenandmyth @gmail. com.

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Women and Spirituality Conference in Minnesota

38th Annual Women and Spirituality Conference

September 20-22, 2019

Mayo Civic Center, Rochester, MN

The classic women’s spirituality conference.

Keynote: Inanna’s Journey: Letting Ourselves Off the Hook

Presented by Rev. Judith Laxer

Rev. Laxer is the founder of Gaia’s Temple in Seattle, WA, and author of Along the Wheel of Time: Sacred Stories for Nature Lovers [Ravenswood Publishing]

Conference organizers say: “Our purpose is to provide a supportive and nurturing setting for a dialogue of caring and mutual respect between and among people from many spiritual and religious traditions. The conference does not advocate or exclude any view and continues to foster an understanding and celebration of similarities and differences. May we continue to aid one another on our individual and communal spiritual journeys.” Learn more about the conference and register at https://womenandspirituality.org/

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Dr. Savithri Shanker De Tourreil


Dr. Savithri Shanker De Tourreil

Sadly, we report that Dr. Savithri Shanker De Tourreil (1935-2019) passed away from complications related to illness, in Montreal, Quebec, on 18 June 2019. She was 84. She was a beloved member of our ASWM community of scholars.

Dr. De Tourreil who held degrees in English literature and religious studies was an active member of the Association for the Study of Women and Mythology (ASWM) where she presented foundational and engaging studies on the matrilineal cultures and customs of Kerala. Her groundbreaking ethnographic doctoral research on women-centered social customs among the Nayar community, *Nayars in a South Indian Matrix: A Study Based on Female Centered Rituals* (Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, 1995) continues to serve as an inspiring model of feminist ethnography, feminist religious studies, matrilineal kinship, goddess scholarship, Hindu women, social change and social customs. Savithri cherished her colleagues and friends in the ASWM circle, and until failing health prevented her from traveling, actively participated in ASWM conferences. Savithri’s clear, original and engaging discussions on the ethnographic, sociological, and anthropological dimensions of women-centered religious practices, gift-economies, matrilineal studies, and goddess mythology have enlivened many ASWM conferences. Savithri’s research has been widely published in feminist religious studies and matrilineal studies.

Full of laughter and wisdom, Savithri was an inspiration to scholars everywhere.  Her niece, Gayatri Devi, who co-presented with her, is a member of our ASWM Board. It was Savithri and Gayatri who taught us the wonderful Hand Blessing of the women of Kerala. To paraphrase the famous Jewish prayer, her memory is a blessing to us all.