book chapter

Navaho religion: a study of symbolism

Bollinger FoundationNew York • Published In 1950 • Pages:

By: Reichard, Gladys Amanda.

Abstract
This is an exhaustive study of the significance of symbolism in Navajo daily and ceremonial life. The author, a well-known ethnologist with many publications on Navajo religion to her credit, spent years in gathering the material for this book. Believing that it is the Navajo religious system which has enabled the people to maintain their identity in a rapidly changing world, Miss Reichard shows how and why they are preoccupied with ritual. Secular and religious behavior are analyzed in the light of the mythology of the cosmos, and the spirits and gods. This analysis relates ideas about man and nature to the symbolism of space, time, direction, texture, form, color, sound, and taste. Consequently, the author materially contributes to an understanding of the fundamental concepts behind the Navajo way of life. Navajo RELIGION has the advantage of following upon the earlier work done on the subject by Father Berard Haile, and Kluckhohn and Wyman. Although the author disagrees with many of their observations and conclusions, she is quick to acknowledge her indebtedness to their pioneering efforts.
Subjects
Representative art
Magical and mental therapy
Shamans and psychotherapists
Mythology
Spirits and gods
Sacred objects and places
Purification and atonement
Revelation and divination
Ritual
Ritual
Ethnophysics
Ethnobotany
Ethnozoology
Ethnopsychology
culture
Navajo
HRAF PubDate
2004
Region
North America
Sub Region
Southwest and Basin
Document Type
book chapter
Evaluation
Creator Type
Ethnologist
Document Rating
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
Katchen S. Coley ; 1951-1952
Field Date
1930-ca. 1948
Coverage Date
not specified
Coverage Place
Navajo Reservation, Arizona, New Mexico, United States
Notes
Gladys A. Reichard
This document consists of excerpts
Includes bibliographical references
LCSH
Navajo Indians