The burning saints : cognition and culture in the fire-walking rituals of the Anastenaria

Investor logo

Warning

This publication doesn't include Faculty of Economics and Administration. It includes Faculty of Arts. Official publication website can be found on muni.cz.
Authors

XYGALATAS Dimitrios

Year of publication 2012
Type Monograph
MU Faculty or unit

Faculty of Arts

Citation
Description The Anastenaria are Orthodox Christians in Northern Greece who observe a unique annual ritual cycle focused on two festivals, dedicated to Saint Constantine and Saint Helen. The festivals involve processions, music, dancing, animal sacrifices, and culminate in an electrifying fire-walking ritual. Carrying the sacred icons of the saints, participants dance over hot coals as the saint moves them. The Burning Saints presents an analysis of these rituals and the psychology behind them. Based on long-term fieldwork, The Burning Saints traces the historical development and sociocultural context of the Greek fire-walking rituals. As a cognitive ethnography, the book aims to identify the social, psychological and neurobiological factors which may be involved and to explore the role of emotional and physiological arousal in the performance of such ritual. A study of participation, experience and meaning, The Burning Saints presents a highly original analysis of how mental processes can shape social and religious behaviour.
Related projects:

You are running an old browser version. We recommend updating your browser to its latest version.