Pagan Fleshworks by Maureen Mercury
SELF-TRANSFORMATION Those who choose to modify their bodies cross a sensate threshold in addition to a psychological one, which places them within the ancient tradition of using the body as a vehicle for the search for ecstatic experience. Body modification is a way of reconnecting to our bodies, to the earth, and to the divine. Acts of body modification--tattooing, piercings, brandings, and implants--are deeply rooted in physical impulses that are obscured in our modern technological society. As we daily become more and more removed from the physicality of our existence, we lose touch with an essential part of our humanity. Pagan Fleshworks reveals that body modification is the postmodern way to heal the mind/body separation and to enliven the soul.These fleshworksare the result of people creating their own rituals and symbols of meaning, their own rites of passage, in order to feel a sense of the divine within. Maureen Mercury relates the various stages of obtaining fleshworks to the stages of alchemy, showing how fleshworks lead to psychic transformation--soul-making--the alchemical process of making extraordinary gold. Using mythological imagery and the stories of those who have chosen to modify their bodies, she identifies the signposts of our journey toward self-expression, exploring the connection between our desires and our outward life. More than thirty-five riveting color photographs by Steve Haworth, the foremost three-dimensional body modification artist in the United States, provide the perfect visual complement to this examination of the soul as it rises toward freedom. MAUREN MERCURY is completing her Ph.D. in depth psychology and has an M.A. in counseling psychology. Her earlier work includes an in-depth view of modern male tattooing. Mercury also holds workshops that focus on the ritual piercing experience. She lives in Ventura, California.| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780892818099 |
| ISBN 10 | 0892818093 |
| Title | Pagan Fleshworks |
| Author | Maureen Mercury |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Inner Traditions Bear and Company |
| Year published | 2000-10-29 |
| Number of pages | 128 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |