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Deep Ancestors: Practicing the Religion of the Proto-Indo-Europeans
Through a combination of the linguistics of a reconstructed language, archaeology, and comparative mythology, Deep Ancestors breathes life into the ancient Proto-Indo-European culture and religion. Ceisiwr states "This book must be considered a report on a work in progress. As time goes by, new research will be done, new ideas and data presented, and old texts and archaeology reinterpreted. This will require changes in the beliefs and practices of reconstructed Proto-Indo-European religion. Consider this a process of progressive revelation, except that instead of coming from the gods it comes from scholars."
298 pages, Paperback
First published October 19, 2009
107 people are currently reading
413 people want to read
About the author
Ceisiwr Serith
14 books51 followersI have been married since 1981 and a father of a daughter since 1982. My wife is simply amazing; quite easily the smartest and nicest person I have ever known. She has a very successful career as a vice-president at an insurance company and as an actuary, a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries. On top of all this, she is cute. I don't just mean cute in a physical sense (although she is). Cute is as cute does, and she does cute. I sometimes wonder how I ever won her.
My daughter is, of course, equally amazing. As well as being beautiful (not just my and my wife’s opinion, by the way), she is brilliant. She speaks Spanish fluently, and shows an interest in languages in general that makes me very happy. Like her mother, she has a big heart, but like her father she still can accept some of the hard facts of the world without blinking. I hope this will come in handy in her chosen field of social work. She's a truly amazing combination of the best of both of us, with her own mysterious nature added.
I myself was born in 1957, in North Tonawanda, NY, and spent my early years in Tonawanda. These two towns, separated by the Erie Canal (they are, in fact, where the canal really ends, despite what the song says), are delightful reminders of a nicer time. Visiting them is like taking a trip back in time.
I didn’t live there long, though, since my father was in the Air Force. We lived in a number of places, including Germany. It was while we were there that I went to Berlin. This was while the Wall was still up, and I was privileged to see it, and to cross it into East Berlin. The contrast between the two was shocking -- the West, a vibrant, colorful, living city, and the East, a city of grey, with rubble left over the WWII, even then in the late 60s. When I was taking classes at the University of Massachusetts years later, I would see Communist students handing out copies of the Daily Worker, and I would want to shake them and scream, "You've never been to East Berlin. You've never seen the Wall."
For college I went to Holy Cross, a good Catholic school, where I met my wife. I received a degree in psychology, with a secondary concentration in Eastern religions, in 1979. The fact that after twenty-five or so years my training in psychology is obsolete leaves me with mixed feelings. I am grateful, however, that pyschology majors were required to take a course in statistics. That has stood me in good stead, and I think that everyone should be required to take it, on at least a high school level. We are confronted daily with statistics -- polls, gambling odds, and such -- but few of us really understand them. Many people still believe that if a series of coin flips has come up consistently heads, the odds against the next flip coming up heads are greater than 50%, or that the odds against a shuffled deck of cards being in order by suit and number are greater than those against any other order. Just the other day I read how in a poll the majority of people polled believed in one thing, with the breakdown something like 49/47%, with the rest undecided. A plurality rather than a majority, but it was even worse; the error of measurement was 4%. In other words, statistcally speaking, the question was tied. People should know these things. But I digress.
After college I served in the Air Force myself, as a communications officer, stationed in England. (I had gone to college on a ROTC scholarship.) My wife and I developed a love for England and the English, and have been back a number of times. We have even considered living there after my wife retires.
I served my hitch in the Air Force and got out. I won't say that the Air Force and I parted on the best of terms, but I know that both of us seemed relieved. My wife and I didn’t like the idea of someone else raising our daughter in daycare, so we decided one of us would stay home and take care of her and the house. My wife wanted to try the working world. Fortunately, I was quite eag
My daughter is, of course, equally amazing. As well as being beautiful (not just my and my wife’s opinion, by the way), she is brilliant. She speaks Spanish fluently, and shows an interest in languages in general that makes me very happy. Like her mother, she has a big heart, but like her father she still can accept some of the hard facts of the world without blinking. I hope this will come in handy in her chosen field of social work. She's a truly amazing combination of the best of both of us, with her own mysterious nature added.
I myself was born in 1957, in North Tonawanda, NY, and spent my early years in Tonawanda. These two towns, separated by the Erie Canal (they are, in fact, where the canal really ends, despite what the song says), are delightful reminders of a nicer time. Visiting them is like taking a trip back in time.
I didn’t live there long, though, since my father was in the Air Force. We lived in a number of places, including Germany. It was while we were there that I went to Berlin. This was while the Wall was still up, and I was privileged to see it, and to cross it into East Berlin. The contrast between the two was shocking -- the West, a vibrant, colorful, living city, and the East, a city of grey, with rubble left over the WWII, even then in the late 60s. When I was taking classes at the University of Massachusetts years later, I would see Communist students handing out copies of the Daily Worker, and I would want to shake them and scream, "You've never been to East Berlin. You've never seen the Wall."
For college I went to Holy Cross, a good Catholic school, where I met my wife. I received a degree in psychology, with a secondary concentration in Eastern religions, in 1979. The fact that after twenty-five or so years my training in psychology is obsolete leaves me with mixed feelings. I am grateful, however, that pyschology majors were required to take a course in statistics. That has stood me in good stead, and I think that everyone should be required to take it, on at least a high school level. We are confronted daily with statistics -- polls, gambling odds, and such -- but few of us really understand them. Many people still believe that if a series of coin flips has come up consistently heads, the odds against the next flip coming up heads are greater than 50%, or that the odds against a shuffled deck of cards being in order by suit and number are greater than those against any other order. Just the other day I read how in a poll the majority of people polled believed in one thing, with the breakdown something like 49/47%, with the rest undecided. A plurality rather than a majority, but it was even worse; the error of measurement was 4%. In other words, statistcally speaking, the question was tied. People should know these things. But I digress.
After college I served in the Air Force myself, as a communications officer, stationed in England. (I had gone to college on a ROTC scholarship.) My wife and I developed a love for England and the English, and have been back a number of times. We have even considered living there after my wife retires.
I served my hitch in the Air Force and got out. I won't say that the Air Force and I parted on the best of terms, but I know that both of us seemed relieved. My wife and I didn’t like the idea of someone else raising our daughter in daycare, so we decided one of us would stay home and take care of her and the house. My wife wanted to try the working world. Fortunately, I was quite eag
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
March 23, 2015
FOr those of you that hold an interest in the spirituality of the Proto-Indo-Europeans then this book will be the one for you to read. THe author is very knowledgeable about the different Pagan religion if Europe, such as the Norse. Celtic and even going further into the realms of the Hindus. All of these rate necessary for a work of this order because they are Indo_Europeans. From somewhere near Central Europe or along the Southern part of Russian, or near Armenia the proto-Indo-Europeans spread out practically all over the world. Going as far West as Europe and far East as India. If you examine these religions you will find out that they have much in common. after all they come from the same source.
Many people are under the impression that old EUrope was a peaceful goddess worshipping place and that the Ino EUropeans who stormed into Europe were warlike horseback riders who worshipped male gods. Such talk is nonsense. Old Europe knew it's share of violence and wars. Not all Indo European culture was spread with the use of violence and war. In fact a lot of it spread through trade and people admiring their ways. There were also peaceful migrations where in the Indo -Europeans learned from their neighbors and their neighbors learned from them.
Documents pertaining to the Indo Europeans and their rituals are scant and far and few between . This of course leads to an accurate as can be reconstructions, most likely pulled from Norse, Hindu and Celtic sources. THe book delves into the hisotry of the people, common laws and customs along with reconsructed rituals at the end. If going Indo-European is your thing or you need a good strong book on Pagan religions then this book is yours to read.
Many people are under the impression that old EUrope was a peaceful goddess worshipping place and that the Ino EUropeans who stormed into Europe were warlike horseback riders who worshipped male gods. Such talk is nonsense. Old Europe knew it's share of violence and wars. Not all Indo European culture was spread with the use of violence and war. In fact a lot of it spread through trade and people admiring their ways. There were also peaceful migrations where in the Indo -Europeans learned from their neighbors and their neighbors learned from them.
Documents pertaining to the Indo Europeans and their rituals are scant and far and few between . This of course leads to an accurate as can be reconstructions, most likely pulled from Norse, Hindu and Celtic sources. THe book delves into the hisotry of the people, common laws and customs along with reconsructed rituals at the end. If going Indo-European is your thing or you need a good strong book on Pagan religions then this book is yours to read.
July 14, 2014
This is a VERY interesting book. Taught me a lot of really useful things. Serith knows his stuff, when it comes to the religion of the ancestors of European pagans (of the Greeks, Romans, Germanic tribes, Celtic tribes, Vedics and many others). Concepts that I had never encountered before, like the roots of Celtic (etc) deities in, for example, the prototype cow goddess and mare goddess, throws new light on the ideas I'm playing with, as a modern druid and CR. Similarly, the Indo-European creation myth really helps with the background of the Norse world tree, and why it is reflected in other cultures. This stuff is just fantastic. Unfortunately, Serith is better at theology and history than he is on the creation of a workable, modern religion based on these ancestral beliefs. For example, he supports the idea of retaining the patriarchal (and gender-normative) system of these ancient beliefs - which may have worked for those ancient tribes, but isn't going to work for us today. Serith doesn't attempt to wrestle with these issues. But for anyone who is building a religious/spiritual path inspired in some way by pre-Christian beliefs, this is a fantastic introduction to where those beliefs came from. Highly recommended.
April 7, 2024
I generally don’t care for books on how to conduct rituals as they are all essentially someone’s personal interpretation of what potentially happened in the past and they are always watered down. In saying that, I enjoyed the parts of this book where the author dived into to potential beliefs of our PIE ancestors. It definitely added some ideas to ponder over. The author explicitly stated he had more information and sources but that the book was just too huge to provide them all. This is actually a pretty quick read, so disappointing that it was felt necessary to leave information out. Don’t let my criticism sway you from reading this book though. It was an enjoyable read and could be a nice source of insight for any pagan book collection.
December 29, 2017
I read this book some time ago, but since I've had it out again it felt like a good time to put up a review. I consider this book a success, a look at a reconstruction of the spiritual lives of our long gone ancestors. It has it's limitations. It's published by a small, small press and it looks like it, from the type face to the proof reading. It has no table of contents, searching it is not easy. The rituals as presented do not inspire me, for the most part. The break down of the cosmology, deities and spiritual concepts are spot on and shed a lot of light on the descendant traditions.
March 31, 2025
Modern forms of paganism are relatively scarce aside from TikTok witches and tarot card readers. Communities that actually partake in traditional forms of paganism are few and far between. Serith identifies as a pagan, particularly practicing druidry, and seemingly wrote this as a handbook for those interested in the more traditional vein of the religious practice. While subtitle reads “Practicing the Religion of the Proto-Indo-Europeans,” the first half of the book is more of a study in comparative religion and trying as best as possible to reconstruct the Proto-Indo-European (PIE) religion. The second half has to do with ritual and worship.
Serith nobly admits there must be some intellectual humility when taking on this endeavor, as the study of PIE religion entails a lot of guesswork due to lack of resources. With that being said, there are two primary areas of study that provide a wealth of information: linguistics and comparative mythology. Reconstructed words and phrases are invaluable in drawing connections between the European religions that developed in each respective nation and/or ethnic group. This goes hand-in-hand with comparative religion, where we can identify common themes, myths, and deities to piece together what the PIEs believed in their proto-Paganism.
Some examples:
Starting with the origin myth, we have two twin males: Yemos and Mannus. Yemos was the ruler of the chaotic world and took council with the gods. However, he was troubled with the lack of balance in the world. There was life, but no death, happiness, but no sadness, etc. This meant that life was sedentary and monotonous. In an act of righteousness, he beseeched Mannus to slay him as a sacrifice so that death would enter the world, and with death would come the true meaning of life, and with sadness, the true meaning of happiness. Mannus did so and then divided up the body parts of his brother to create and organize the new world, which before only existed in chaos. He used the skull for the sky, the brain for the clouds, the eyes for the sun and moon, hair for the plants, flesh for the soul, bones for the rocks, and blood for the rivers and streams. Such is the creation of the world.
This is of course a reconstruction. There are no texts or other archeological findings that mention the names Yemos and Mannus specifically. So where do these names come from, as well as the tale of twin brothers, and the world being created from self-sacrifice? We can look to Norse religion as one example. In Snorri’s Edda, Ymir (one of the names PIE linguists use to reconstruct the name Yemos) is killed by Odin, Vili, and Ve (who are brothers). They then shape the world from his body in the same way Mannus does with Yemos. In Roman religion, there are other comparisons we can make. Remus (another name along with Ymir that leads us to believe Yemos is likely accurate) and Romulus are twins who founded Rome. While there are many variations of this myth, most of them involve Romulus killing Remus and then founding the great nation. Further, Ovid writes about Atlas being the one who holds up the sky and is transformed into a mountain, with his hair into the trees, bones into boulders, etc. “It makes us think - is death (Yemos) the pillar which holds up the universe?”
The cosmology of PIE religion is found in “The World Tree.” Most are familiar with the more common World Egg which comes later on, but the World Tree is present in many European cosmologies (You can search for an image of the world tree cosmology, which will help in understanding how it is described). It is most often depicted as an Oak tree, but sometimes it is Ash or Sycamore in places where Oak isn’t common. The base of the tree is the earth as we know it. An ocean surrounds it, and the ocean represents chaos. In the ocean lies the cosmic serpent, also known as the dragon or hydra. The trunk and branches have structure, which represent the order of the world (the Xartus). The branches extend upward, into and beyond the world. The ocean has no form and is always in flux, which is why it represents chaos. The ocean, however, contains the cosmic seeds, which float and wander through the waves. The cosmic seeds come from the fruit of the branches that fall into the water. These cosmic seeds and water are needed for the tree to grow. We can return back to the sacrifice of Yemos, where he declared that death was needed so that we can live. The cosmic seeds are carried by chaos so that the Xartus may be implemented into the world, so that we can live and be virtuous. Iron sharpens iron, hard times create strong men, etc.
Out of everything discussed in the book, Serith notes that nothing is more attested to than the world tree cosmology. We have detailed references to it in Norse, Celtic, Greek, Iranian, and many other pagan European religions. As you can tell, it goes beyond a simple description of how the world is, but extends into our worldview, our appreciation of life, our perseverance through struggle, and the like. An understanding of PIE cosmology is essential for understanding PIE religion.
The PIE deities are essentially a reconstruction of common deities throughout the various pagan religions of Europe. They represent natural phenomena and forces, as well as concepts of justice, virtue, etc. Since the branches of the world tree extend upward, it makes sense why most if not all leaders of European pantheons are gods of the sky. The three most recognizable pagan deities, Zeus, Jupiter, and Thor, all have a lot in common. They are first and foremost, as already established, gods of the sky and leaders of their respective pantheons. Since they dwell in the sky, they wield lightning and thunder as their weapons. These weapons represent the dark side of the sky, both literally and figuratively. Only at night, and even more so during storms, do these gods express their rage with their weapons and power. And since the skies are responsible for giving rain to crops and bodies of water, it also makes sense why they are also gods of agriculture. We can deduce then that the PIEs had a chief deity that fit most if not all of these descriptions. But what he was called and how they perceived him is difficult to say.
These are of course just a few of many examples given throughout the book to help give you an idea of what to expect. Despite all the ambiguity involved in a writing like this, it is nevertheless well-researched and packed with comparative information to help us understand PIE religion and its successors. The first half of the book is incredibly informative. The second half is equally interesting, however, many of the recreations of the rituals, at least the public ones and those that involve fire, are virtually impossible for anyone who doesn’t live in a very rural area. There aren’t many books that tackle this subject, so this is worth picking up for anyone interested in ancient paganism or pagan revival.
Serith nobly admits there must be some intellectual humility when taking on this endeavor, as the study of PIE religion entails a lot of guesswork due to lack of resources. With that being said, there are two primary areas of study that provide a wealth of information: linguistics and comparative mythology. Reconstructed words and phrases are invaluable in drawing connections between the European religions that developed in each respective nation and/or ethnic group. This goes hand-in-hand with comparative religion, where we can identify common themes, myths, and deities to piece together what the PIEs believed in their proto-Paganism.
Some examples:
Starting with the origin myth, we have two twin males: Yemos and Mannus. Yemos was the ruler of the chaotic world and took council with the gods. However, he was troubled with the lack of balance in the world. There was life, but no death, happiness, but no sadness, etc. This meant that life was sedentary and monotonous. In an act of righteousness, he beseeched Mannus to slay him as a sacrifice so that death would enter the world, and with death would come the true meaning of life, and with sadness, the true meaning of happiness. Mannus did so and then divided up the body parts of his brother to create and organize the new world, which before only existed in chaos. He used the skull for the sky, the brain for the clouds, the eyes for the sun and moon, hair for the plants, flesh for the soul, bones for the rocks, and blood for the rivers and streams. Such is the creation of the world.
This is of course a reconstruction. There are no texts or other archeological findings that mention the names Yemos and Mannus specifically. So where do these names come from, as well as the tale of twin brothers, and the world being created from self-sacrifice? We can look to Norse religion as one example. In Snorri’s Edda, Ymir (one of the names PIE linguists use to reconstruct the name Yemos) is killed by Odin, Vili, and Ve (who are brothers). They then shape the world from his body in the same way Mannus does with Yemos. In Roman religion, there are other comparisons we can make. Remus (another name along with Ymir that leads us to believe Yemos is likely accurate) and Romulus are twins who founded Rome. While there are many variations of this myth, most of them involve Romulus killing Remus and then founding the great nation. Further, Ovid writes about Atlas being the one who holds up the sky and is transformed into a mountain, with his hair into the trees, bones into boulders, etc. “It makes us think - is death (Yemos) the pillar which holds up the universe?”
The cosmology of PIE religion is found in “The World Tree.” Most are familiar with the more common World Egg which comes later on, but the World Tree is present in many European cosmologies (You can search for an image of the world tree cosmology, which will help in understanding how it is described). It is most often depicted as an Oak tree, but sometimes it is Ash or Sycamore in places where Oak isn’t common. The base of the tree is the earth as we know it. An ocean surrounds it, and the ocean represents chaos. In the ocean lies the cosmic serpent, also known as the dragon or hydra. The trunk and branches have structure, which represent the order of the world (the Xartus). The branches extend upward, into and beyond the world. The ocean has no form and is always in flux, which is why it represents chaos. The ocean, however, contains the cosmic seeds, which float and wander through the waves. The cosmic seeds come from the fruit of the branches that fall into the water. These cosmic seeds and water are needed for the tree to grow. We can return back to the sacrifice of Yemos, where he declared that death was needed so that we can live. The cosmic seeds are carried by chaos so that the Xartus may be implemented into the world, so that we can live and be virtuous. Iron sharpens iron, hard times create strong men, etc.
Out of everything discussed in the book, Serith notes that nothing is more attested to than the world tree cosmology. We have detailed references to it in Norse, Celtic, Greek, Iranian, and many other pagan European religions. As you can tell, it goes beyond a simple description of how the world is, but extends into our worldview, our appreciation of life, our perseverance through struggle, and the like. An understanding of PIE cosmology is essential for understanding PIE religion.
The PIE deities are essentially a reconstruction of common deities throughout the various pagan religions of Europe. They represent natural phenomena and forces, as well as concepts of justice, virtue, etc. Since the branches of the world tree extend upward, it makes sense why most if not all leaders of European pantheons are gods of the sky. The three most recognizable pagan deities, Zeus, Jupiter, and Thor, all have a lot in common. They are first and foremost, as already established, gods of the sky and leaders of their respective pantheons. Since they dwell in the sky, they wield lightning and thunder as their weapons. These weapons represent the dark side of the sky, both literally and figuratively. Only at night, and even more so during storms, do these gods express their rage with their weapons and power. And since the skies are responsible for giving rain to crops and bodies of water, it also makes sense why they are also gods of agriculture. We can deduce then that the PIEs had a chief deity that fit most if not all of these descriptions. But what he was called and how they perceived him is difficult to say.
These are of course just a few of many examples given throughout the book to help give you an idea of what to expect. Despite all the ambiguity involved in a writing like this, it is nevertheless well-researched and packed with comparative information to help us understand PIE religion and its successors. The first half of the book is incredibly informative. The second half is equally interesting, however, many of the recreations of the rituals, at least the public ones and those that involve fire, are virtually impossible for anyone who doesn’t live in a very rural area. There aren’t many books that tackle this subject, so this is worth picking up for anyone interested in ancient paganism or pagan revival.
December 31, 2015
My problem with this book was a problem with expectations. I was expecting to read a book about the Proto-Indo-European religion, but this book actually behaves as if someone is trying to practice said religion. Large parts of the book appear to be largely made up rituals based on some scrap of information--or made up entirely, I couldn't tell. In any case, I got through it really quickly by skipping all of that and just reading for the parts which try to use the comparative method to figure out the religion. Those parts were pretty good, but I'm glad I borrowed it on Amazon instead of buying it.
April 1, 2010
Amazing book. Check out my review: Deep Ancestors
July 29, 2017
Bad buy. I initially thought it was about reconstruction of the protoindoeuropean religion, instead, neopaganism is presented and propagated (even with embarrassing prayers!). It is not possible to separate serious research from fiction. Linguistic etymology is in part interesting, but I know too little in the field to be able to judge what is reasonable. As far as mythology is concerned, it presents some general knowledge, some daring conjectures that may be true, and some conjectures that seem dubious to me, for example the warrior hero, who defeats chaos, as an indoeuropean specific. He appears in other cultures too (e.g. Marduk / Tiamat), perhaps in all. The book also seems to generalize too much and to see too many symmetries. Everything is arranged according to so few patterns that it seems unbelievable to me.
I have bought the book despite its suspicious title, because the reading sample had been more modest and constrained with respect to speculation and fiction. The description at Amazon had not been very informative. The price of the book had been so low that I quickly gave it a try without first looking into Goodreads, a mistake.
I cannot recommend the book to historically interested people, it is rather something for the esoterics corner.
I have bought the book despite its suspicious title, because the reading sample had been more modest and constrained with respect to speculation and fiction. The description at Amazon had not been very informative. The price of the book had been so low that I quickly gave it a try without first looking into Goodreads, a mistake.
I cannot recommend the book to historically interested people, it is rather something for the esoterics corner.
July 23, 2021
Finally got around to reading this book. So I would recommend this book if people are interested in some comparative linguistics and some comparative mythology. But really it’s made for people interested in developing a personal practice that draws on common Indo European themes. After the first couple of chapters a lot of what you get is the author making an educated guess about how we could bring these traditions into contemporary practice. It’s creative work and he’s pretty straightforward about that. All of my critiques are about reconstructionism in general. For example, there’s a fall ritual which is about welcoming back the people who’ve been taking care of the herds or who have been out on Warrior campaigns and re-integrating them into the household. I don’t see the point in maintaining a gendered division in a contemporary ritual. Most of us are not out doing herding, but some of us are out doing other things and need to be re-integrated. I think it makes a lot more sense to divide things based on what people are actually doing with their real lives to make the ritual as effective and meaningful as possible.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 2, 2018
In a way I now recognize as silly, I expected this book to be much less conjecture. Even with such a contentious topic lacking any strong evidence outside comparative linguistics and mythology, this book is much more personal gnosis than historical reconstruction. More space was taken up in this book by the author's personal prayers to various personally constructed deities than to any really relevant information.
In summary, I got this book because it was free and J.P. Mallory's was $50.
In summary, I got this book because it was free and J.P. Mallory's was $50.
December 17, 2024
This book is amazing if you want hypothesized rituals of the Indo Europeans. Other than that, it’s not that great. The resources and bibliography are outstanding, and the historical narrative that’s pushed is realistic and compelling.
However, I am ultimately greatly disappointed that this text focuses so much on imagined rituals than anything else. I know the IE people more than likely performed rituals but having an entire book dedicated to this seems like a waste.
However, I am ultimately greatly disappointed that this text focuses so much on imagined rituals than anything else. I know the IE people more than likely performed rituals but having an entire book dedicated to this seems like a waste.
February 15, 2023
Scholarly and Spiritually beautiful
I was surprised by how well researched this book is. I am fascinated and inspired by how much can be reconstructed.
I was surprised by how well researched this book is. I am fascinated and inspired by how much can be reconstructed.
November 11, 2024
some interesting stuff, but generally terrible advice.
April 5, 2018
Very disappointing and poorly documented. I was expecting research on the topic of indoeuropean studies but ended up with a book more or less related to new age religion:
The religion of the Indo-European - practiced by the author! A few good reference to Indo european myths. Too proselitic. He lost me on the second part when he is trying to teach the religion and I had to give it up which I do rarely.
The religion of the Indo-European - practiced by the author! A few good reference to Indo european myths. Too proselitic. He lost me on the second part when he is trying to teach the religion and I had to give it up which I do rarely.
June 29, 2011
This is a fun book whose main drawback, other than a lack of chapter titles in the table of contents, is that it likely appeals to a limited audience: it is too speculative for the academic reader, and too niche for the popular reader. If, however, you happen to be a practitioner of a modern reconstruction of Proto-Indo-European religion, this book is a necessity. There are nice tidbits as well for other IE reconstructionists and similarly inclined NeoPagans.
Read
June 12, 2021Bought by accident when it was recommended to me during a research foray. Far too conjectural to be of interest to me anthropologically or historically; far too irritatingly patriarchal and didactic to appeal to my heathen side. Altogether vexing.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews