To Think with a Good Heart : Wixarika Women, Weavers, and Shamans

by Schaefer, Stacy B.

• ISBN13: 9780874806953
• ISBN10: 087480695X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-05-01
• Publisher: Univ of Utah Pr

Summary

For Centuries the Huichol Indian women of western Mexico, or Wixarika, as they prefer to call themselves, have been weaving textiles on backstrap looms. Since pre-Columbian times their family weaving traditions have been passed down from mother to daughter and from grandmother to granddaughter. Backstrap loom weaving is much more than either an art form or a means of creating utilitarian objects; it is a part of a woman's identity and a way of expressing ancient religious beliefs. Her weavings are a means to spiritual growth as well as a mirror of the changes and transformations she undergoes as she follows her life's path.

In 1985 Stacy Schaefer undertook ethnographic fieldwork apprenticing with master weavers in two Wixarika families. To Think with a Good Heart addresses both the art and craft of weaving as well the dramas and personalities in a community. This is a fascinating journey into a realm of ancient beliefs and traditions woven into the story of a way of life constantly threatened by the outside world.

Author Biography

Stacy B. Schaefer is director of the Museum of Anthropology and assistant professor of anthropology, California State University, Chico

Table of Contents

List of Figures	ix
List of Plates	xi
Acknowledgments	xiii
Preface: The Art of Thinking with a Good Heart	xvii
Introduction: Spinning the Thread	1	(10)
Origins of Flesh and Fabric	11	(14)
Two Families of Women and Their Weaving Ways	25	(24)
Women and Men	49	(44)
Weaving from Girls to Women	93	(42)
The Economics of Weaving	135	(18)
Awakening the Heart Memory: The Religious Aspects of weaving	153	(30)
Plates following page	172	(11)
The Art of Weaving Symbols	183	(56)
Weavers, Shamans, and Goddesses	239	(22)
Epilogue: Weaving the Future	261	(14)
Appendix A: Weaving Technology	275	(8)
Appendix B: Wixarika Female Names	283	(2)
Notes	285	(18)
Glossary	303	(14)
Bibliography	317	(28)
Index	345