Last week I read so many wonderful posts on the @ecotrain question of the week! I was so inspired, but having a busy week so I didn’t get to post. Yesterday as I was painting in my studio I was looking for something interesting to listen to and happened to find a series of videos about the work of a Lithuanian-American archeologist named Marija Gumbutas.
Gimbutas gained fame and notoriety in the English-speaking world with her last three English-language books: The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe (1974); The Language of the Goddess (1989), which inspired an exhibition in Wiesbaden, 1993-4; and the last of the three, The Civilization of the Goddess (1991), which, based on her documented archaeological findings, presented an overview of her conclusions about Neolithic cultures across Europe: housing patterns, social structure, art, religion, and the nature of literacy.
The Civilization of the Goddess articulated what Gimbutas saw as the differences between the Old European system, which she considered goddess- and woman-centered (gynocentric), and the Bronze Age Indo-European patriarchal ("androcratic") culture which supplanted it. According to her interpretations, gynocentric (or matristic) societies were peaceful, honored women, and espoused economic equality.
The androcratic, or male-dominated, Kurgan peoples, on the other hand, invaded Europe and imposed upon its natives the hierarchical rule of male warriors.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marija_Gimbutas
Even though the societies that she studied were ancient, it is a real world example of how a matristic society can function. She found and tied together a plethora of archeological evidence that was virtually ignored by the male dominated academia of her day. If you are interested in history or archeology, you will find these videos fascinating.
I just had to insert a couple of my dancing goddess gif’s that I found.
I hope this has opened your mind to the possibilities of a kinder, gentler society.
