Taita Imbabura: Reverence and Mirth in Mountain Worship
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Date
2019
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Folklor Edebiyat
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Abstract
With family roots in the Rocky
Mountains of Montana, I have always
sought the fresh air and vistas of the high
places, and this quest led me, eventually,
to the high Andes Mountains on the South
American continent. In the Andes region of
South America, for many a century people
have followed the rivers to their highland
sources and walked to the edge of the
glaciers, to carry out rituals connecting
themselves and their communities to the
sources of spiritual power. Tied to these
beliefs and practices is a rich Andean mythology of mountain spirits. In this paper, I venture
into the Andean highlands to explore mythic narratives tied to beliefs and practices associated
with Volcán Imbabura, an imposing volcano of northern Ecuador rising to an elevation of
4,630 meters above sea level and towering over the populated corridor running from Ibarra
at the north to Otavalo at the south. The purpose of this venture is to explore apparently
contradictory tendencies in mountain worship, and by extension, to further complicate facile
notions of spiritual or religious experience.
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McDowell, John H. “Taita Imbabura: Reverence and Mirth in Mountain Worship.” Folklor Edebiyat (Folklore & Literature): Prof. Dr. İhan Başgöz 100th Special Issue, (2019) pages 759-769.
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